Organic acids are studied as candidate alternatives to antibiotic growth promoters. Their action is related to the pH reduction of the intestinal digesta, affecting the gut ecosystem in numerous ways. Intestinal microbiota can be altered as a result of the remarkable antibacterial activity of organic acids and the growth enhancement of non-pathogenic beneficial microorganisms, due to exclusive competition. Antibacterial activity has been widely reported for many poultry pathogens, such as Salmonella spp., Escherichia coli, Clostridium perfringens, Campylobacter spp., both in vitro and in vivo. However, it seems to depend on many factors concerning the weak acid used and the gut ecosystem. Apart from the microbiota, diet supplementation of organic acids has trophic effects on the intestinal mucosa, modifying the morphologic characteristics of intestinal villi and crypts and maintaining epithelial integrity. Furthermore, as found recently, organic acids have anti-inflammatory and immunostimulating properties. Diet acidification increases gastric proteolysis and the utilization of proteins and amino acids, affects pancreatic secretions and mineral absorption. There are also reports for an effect on appetite and palatability of the feed. All these properties attributed to organic acids have either a direct or indirect effect on the performance and health, even though the results presented for poultry lack consistency. Nonetheless, the benefits of organic acids can have practical application in the control of clinical and subclinical conditions, but more research is needed to study these perspectives.
Sick and dead 2-months-old partridges (Alectoris chukar) were presented to the unit of Avian Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece. The birds were reared at a specially constructed wire cage, which covered 600 m2 of the ground, including self-growing flora, in the region of Diavata, in the countryside of Thessaloniki. The farm consisted of young partridges, adult pheasants and wild passerines. Two months after placing the birds, 5 partridges were found dead. During the clinical examination of the submitted sick partridges, severe respiratory distress was observed, while some birds had anemic combs and others were breathing with open beaks and had their necks stretched. The necropsy revealed the presence of numerous gapeworms in the lumen of the trachea, forming the typical " Y" shape, since male and female Syngamus trachea are locked in copulation. The mucosa of trachea was, also, thickened, irritated and congested. No lesions to other organs were observed and the microbiological examination of liver, spleen and air-sacs samples was negative. Meanwhile, faecal samples were collected from the farm for parasitological examination. A sedimentation method was used and eggs of S. trachea were found. Syngamosis was determined to be the cause of the partridges' death. The gapeworms are considered potentially dangerous, especially for backyard, game-birds and free-living birds, while the control of the disease is complicated. This fact, along with the selective appearance of the clinical signs and the mortality only in the partridges of the farm are the remarkable points discussed in this article.
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