Variation in toe-web response of turkey poults to phytohemagglutinin-P and their resistance to Escherichia coli challenge

Poultry Science
G R BayyariN C Rath

Abstract

One thousand 5-wk-old male turkeys from each of two commercial strains (A and B) were grouped into low, medium, and high responders based on the cutaneous basophil hypersensitivity (CBH) response obtained 24 h after toe-web inoculation with 100 micrograms of phytohemagglutinin-P (PHA-P). The CBH response for Strain A was higher than strain B (P = 0.00001) and ranged from 0 to 1.95 mm, with a mean of 0.66, whereas the CBH response for Strain B ranged from 0 to 1.67 mm with a mean of 0.38. At 6 wk of age, 36 birds from each of the six response groups were inoculated into the left thoracic air sac with 1.5 x 10(7) cfu of an early log phase broth culture of Escherichia coli. Samples of 5 or 10 birds were necropsied from each of the six groups at 7, 14, 28, and 42 d postinfection (PI). Birds were scored for air-sacculitis/pericarditis (AS) and turkey osteomyelitis complex (TOC). Overall mortality of birds inoculated with E. coli was 31%. There were no mortalities in unchallenged controls. Strain A had significantly higher Week 1 mortality, marginally higher overall mortality (P = 0.1), and higher AS scores than Strain B. There were no TOC lesions detected until 7 d PI, after which all mortalities had TOC lesions in multiple sites. T...Continue Reading

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