Effects of Eimeria tenella infection on chicken caecal microbiome diversity, exploring variation associated with severity of pathology

Abstract

Eimeria species cause the intestinal disease coccidiosis, most notably in poultry. While the direct impact of coccidiosis on animal health and welfare is clear, its influence on the enteric microbiota and by-stander effects on chicken health and production remains largely unknown, with the possible exception of Clostridium perfringens (necrotic enteritis). This study evaluated the composition and structure of the caecal microbiome in the presence or absence of a defined Eimeria tenella challenge infection in Cobb500 broiler chickens using 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing. The severity of clinical coccidiosis in individual chickens was quantified by caecal lesion scoring and microbial changes associated with different lesion scores identified. Following E. tenella infection the diversity of taxa within the caecal microbiome remained largely stable. However, infection induced significant changes in the abundance of some microbial taxa. The greatest changes were detected in birds displaying severe caecal pathology; taxa belonging to the order Enterobacteriaceae were increased, while taxa from Bacillales and Lactobacillales were decreased with the changes correlated with lesion severity. Significantly different profiles were also detected in infected birds which remained asymptomatic (lesion score 0), with taxa belonging to the genera Bacteroides decreased and Lactobacillus increased. Many differential taxa from the order Clostridiales were identified, with some increasing and others decreasing in abundance in Eimeria-infected animals. The results support the view that caecal microbiome dysbiosis associated with Eimeria infection contributes to disease pathology, and could be a target for intervention to mitigate the impact of coccidiosis on poultry productivity and welfare. This work highlights that E. tenella infection has a significant impact on the abundance of some caecal bacteria with notable differences detected between lesion score categories emphasising the importance of accounting for differences in caecal lesions when investigating the relationship between E. tenella and the poultry intestinal microbiome.

Take care of the environment: housing conditions affect the interplay of nutritional interventions and intestinal microbiota in broiler chickens

“…on the performance of chickens have been observed earlier [33], possibly because of the different relative abundance of Lactobacillus or the presence of different species of Lactobacillus. In H1 the genus Bacteroides and family Peptostreptococcaceae were higher in +MCFA fed broilers, which are both associated with a healthy intestine [6,34,35]. In H2 the relative abundances of Ruminococcus torques group, Subdoligranulum, and Fusicatenibacter were heightened in +MCFA fed broilers.…”

Influence of Eimeria falciformis Infection on Gut Microbiota and Metabolic Pathways in Mice

“…Here we report significant changes in the abundances of gut microbiota and plasma metabolites in E. falciformis-infected mice. Eimeria infection increased the abundances of Escherichia, Shigella, and Helicobacter bacteria, most of which have been described as opportunistic pathogens (31). In contrast, parasitic infection decreased levels of Lachnospiraceae bacterium NK4A136, Ruminiclostridium, Alistipes, and Lactobacillus organisms, which are considered beneficial for gut health (32)(33)(34).…”

A Consistent and Predictable Commercial Broiler Chicken Bacterial Microbiota in Antibiotic-Free Production Displays Strong Correlations with Performance

“…A number of recent studies on the bacterial microbiota of broiler chickens have primarily focused on poultry pathogens and their effects on the host. Not surprisingly, such infectious microorganisms have been shown to exert a potentially negative impact on the broiler microbiome (1)(2)(3). Beyond virulent pathogens themselves, vaccines against these pathogens can also exert a detrimental effect on broiler microbiota (4).…”