Evaluating the role of vaccination and oocyst management in modulating immune responses of Eimeria-challenged turkey poults.
- 1Prestage Department of Poultry Science, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, United States.
- 2Department of Population Health and Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Raleigh, North Carolina, United States.
- 3Prestage Department of Poultry Science, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Electronic address: [email protected].
Abstract
This study aimed to assess the effects of Eimeria vaccination and amprolium treatment on growth performance, fecal oocyst shedding, and immune response in tom poults challenged with mixed Eimeria species. Two experiments were completed; experiment 1 evaluated the effect of vaccine and amprolium (A) supplementation on OPG cycling. Poults were assigned to five groups: (a) non-vaccinated, non-inoculated (NVNI), (b) low dose (L), (c) low dose with A (LA), (d) high dose (H), and (e) high dose with A (HA). On d1, 40% of poults in the L & LA groups were vaccinated with 100 oocysts/poult of mixed Eimeria species, while 70% in the H & HA group were vaccinated with 500 oocysts/poult. Experiment 2 involved poults randomly assigned to three groups: (a) non -vaccinated (NV), (b) vaccinated (V), and (c) vaccinated plus A (VA). In the V and VA groups, 40% of poults received 100 oocysts/poult containing mixed Eimeria species on d1, while VA received amprolium from d8 to d12. On d21, V and VA were challenged with 25,000 oocysts/poult of Eimeria. Fecal oocyst shedding was monitored from d6 to d28 and lesion scores on d28. Immune responses were assessed by mRNA expression analysis in the ceca and cecal tonsils, and immune cell profiling in the cecal tonsils. L had the highest oocyst shedding, followed by H. In both experiments, lesion scores were minimal and fecal oocyst shedding was significantly reduced (P < 0.05) in the treatment groups receiving brief amprolium. Immune modulation was most pronounced in the VA group, showing that low oocyst cycling can still induce an immune response in turkeys. Overall, combining vaccination with amprolium improved performance, reduced oocyst shedding, and mitigated intestinal damage while modulating the immune response, thereby offering an effective strategy for managing coccidiosis vaccine response in poultry.
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BibTeX
@article{ibiwoye2026evaluating,
title = {{Evaluating the role of vaccination and oocyst management in modulating immune responses of Eimeria-challenged turkey poults.}},
author = {Demilade I Ibiwoye and Philip Yeboah and Thaciane A Lorenzo and Yabaiz Tahir and Tracy Omasanuwa and Carissa Gaghan and Shelly Nolin and Raveendra Kulkarni and Lisa Bielke},
journal = {Poultry science},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.1016/j.psj.2026.107765},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42874230},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Evaluating the role of vaccination and oocyst management in modulating immune responses of Eimeria-challenged turkey poults.
AU - Demilade I Ibiwoye
AU - Philip Yeboah
AU - Thaciane A Lorenzo
AU - Yabaiz Tahir
AU - Tracy Omasanuwa
AU - Carissa Gaghan
AU - Shelly Nolin
AU - Raveendra Kulkarni
AU - Lisa Bielke
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/18
JO - Poultry science
DO - 10.1016/j.psj.2026.107765
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42874230
AB - This study aimed to assess the effects of Eimeria vaccination and amprolium treatment on growth performance, fecal oocyst shedding, and immune response in tom poults challenged with mixed Eimeria species. Two experiments were completed; experiment 1 evaluated the effect of vaccine and amprolium (A) supplementation on OPG cycling. Poults were assigned to five groups: (a) non-vaccinated, non-inoculated (NVNI), (b) low dose (L), (c) low dose with A (LA), (d) high dose (H), and (e) high dose with A (HA). On d1, 40% of poults in the L & LA groups were vaccinated with 100 oocysts/poult of mixed Eimeria species, while 70% in the H & HA group were vaccinated with 500 oocysts/poult. Experiment 2 involved poults randomly assigned to three groups: (a) non -vaccinated (NV), (b) vaccinated (V), and (c) vaccinated plus A (VA). In the V and VA groups, 40% of poults received 100 oocysts/poult containing mixed Eimeria species on d1, while VA received amprolium from d8 to d12. On d21, V and VA were challenged with 25,000 oocysts/poult of Eimeria. Fecal oocyst shedding was monitored from d6 to d28 and lesion scores on d28. Immune responses were assessed by mRNA expression analysis in the ceca and cecal tonsils, and immune cell profiling in the cecal tonsils. L had the highest oocyst shedding, followed by H. In both experiments, lesion scores were minimal and fecal oocyst shedding was significantly reduced (P < 0.05) in the treatment groups receiving brief amprolium. Immune modulation was most pronounced in the VA group, showing that low oocyst cycling can still induce an immune response in turkeys. Overall, combining vaccination with amprolium improved performance, reduced oocyst shedding, and mitigated intestinal damage while modulating the immune response, thereby offering an effective strategy for managing coccidiosis vaccine response in poultry.
SN - 0032-5791
SN - 1525-3171
ER -