Effects of Polyether Ionophores on the Protective Immune Responses of Broiler Chickens against Angara Disease and Newcastle Disease Viruses

Abstract

Immunization against Angara disease virus (ADV), a serotype 4 avian adenovirus, and Newcastle disease virus (NDV), an avian paramyxovirus serotype 1, is the mainstay of a broiler vaccination programme, while polyether ionophores usually form an essential component of a broiler medication programme in most parts of India and Pakistan. The role of polyether ionophores in the protective immune responses of broiler chickens vaccinated and challenged with ADV and NDV was investigated. A total of 1600 birds were divided into eight groups of 200 birds each. First four groups were vaccinated against NDV and ADV, while the remaining four served as unvaccinated controls. The first 3 groups of birds were administered salinomycin, monensin and cyclophosphamide (CYP), respectively. The last group served as an untreated control. The same treatment schedule was also followed for the next four unvaccinated groups. The post-vaccination and post-challenge serological responses to NDV and ADV, body and lymphoid organ weight gains, post-challenge survival rate and detection of NDV and ADV in the tissues of infected birds were evaluated. Birds administered salinomycin showed a significant stimulation of protective immune responses against both NDV and ADV as compared to the untreated and CYP-treated birds. Monensin also enhanced the protective immune responses against both viruses but the effect was not statistically significant. Thus, it is concluded that monensin and salinomycin augment the anti-NDV and anti-ADV immune responses in broiler chickens, which supports their use in poultry flocks.

Prevalence and distribution ofEimeriaspecies in broiler chicken farms of different capacities

“…Also, anticoccidial drugs interfere with the development of immunity in chickens. Broadly speaking, ionophores in low concentration stimulate the immune response, and in higher doses have immunosuppressive effect [33, 42]. Long et al [28] found that monensin at 60–100 ppm reduced the immune response to infection with Eimeria , while concentration of 40 and 50 ppm allowed good development of immunity.…”

Polyether ionophores: broad-spectrum and promising biologically active molecules for the control of drug-resistant bacteria and parasites

“…These authors established that unlike cyclophosphamide, salinomycin (4), at a dosage of 0.1 g/kg, did not adversely affect the bursal, splenic, thymic and liver weight gain [ 106 ]. It was also established that NDV vaccinated chickens that received salinomycin (4) 60 mg/kg of feed had higher antibiotic titers at days 14, 21, 28, 35, 42 compared to unmedicated chickens [52,106] or vaccinated chickens that were medicated with monensin (2) 12 mg/kg instead [ 52 ]. These salinomycin medicated chickens also gained significantly more weight, p < 0.05, compared to all the other groups evaluated.…”

“…Several other carboxyl ionophores are also reported to have anticoccidial utility in chickens and turkeys. Although these are the most common additives used now, there are several other carboxyl ionophores reported to be more effective than additives marketed at present [49][50][51][52][53][54][55][56][57][58][59].…”

Antimicrobials, Gut Microbiota and Immunity in Chickens

“…However, with ND vaccination regime, IFN-γ production in Con-A-stimulated splenocytes was significantly elevated in antibiotic-treated chickens compared with the non-medicated control group. These two studies (Munir et al, 2007;Khalifeh et al, 2009) support the view that antimicrobials can enhance cell-mediated immunity in broiler chickens.…”