Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40025471›Full record

ArticleBMC veterinary research2025

Nigella sativa monophosphoryl lipid A nanoliposome: a promising antibiotic alternative and immunomodulator to control virulent pandemic drug-resistant Salmonella pullorum infection in broiler chicks.

Adel Attia M Ahmad, Elsayed Alsaied Masoud Hussien, Alaa A A M Elian, Mohamed Abdelmoneim, A Ali, Ahmed E Abdelhamid, Gamal A Elmowalid

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMC veterinary research, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

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Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
  2. Natural Products AgainstMicroorganisms · 2026
    Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Adel Attia M AhmadMicrobiology Department, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Zagazig University, Sharqiah, Egypt. AAAhmmad@Vet.ZU.edu.eg.
Elsayed Alsaied Masoud HussienAnimal Health Research Institute, Agriculture Research Center, Dokki, Giza, Egypt.
Alaa A A M ElianAnimal Health Research Institute, Agriculture Research Center, Dokki, Giza, Egypt.
Mohamed AbdelmoneimMicrobiology Department, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Zagazig University, Sharqiah, Egypt.
A AliPathology Department, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Zagazig University, Sharqiah, Egypt.
Ahmed E AbdelhamidPolymers and Pigments Department, National Research Center, Giza, Dokki, Egypt.
Gamal A ElmowalidMicrobiology Department, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Zagazig University, Sharqiah, Egypt.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundSalmonella enterica serovar Pullorum, the causative agent of pullorum disease, is one cause of the economic losses in the global poultry industry. Vaccination and antibiotics are still the most effective methods of controlling Salmonella, even though the vaccine contains the causative agent, and the antibiotic therapy has limited efficacy. We provide a novel immunostimulator and antibiotic substitute to protect against and avoid Salmonella pullorum (SP) infection.

methodsNigella sativa-purified oil (NS) and monophosphoryl lipid A (MPLA) were formulated as nanoliposomal compounds (NS-MPLA). Their protective and immunomodulatory efficacies were experimentally tested orally in broiler chicks against challenge with virulent pandemic drug-resistant SP. Four chick groups were utilized: control; NS-MPLA-supplemented; SP-challenged; and SP-challenged, then NS-MPLA-treated. Clinical signs, organ gross pathology, colony-forming counts, and tissue histopathological alterations were investigated. The relative fold-changes in the expression of IL-1β, IL-4, IL-17, IL-22, TLR-4, INF-γ, IgA, and MUC2 genes were evaluated.

resultsThe SP-challenged chicks showed notable symptoms and extensive pathological lesions in their internal organs. The bacteria colonized the challenged chicks' livers and continued to shed in their feces for 5-6 days. A minor amount of immune cell tissue trafficking was noted. The NS-MPLA-treated chicks displayed opposing patterns after being challenged with SP. They exhibited mild clinical signs with modest gross pathology in the internal organs. After 3-4 days, the liver and the fecal droppings were cleared of SP. Significant heterophilic aggregation, lymphocytic infiltration, and lymphoid follicle enlargement were observed. Additionally, chicks challenged with SP and then NS-MPLA-treated showed a 5- to tenfold increase in immune-related cytokines, immunoglobulin A, and mucosal relative gene expression folds compared to the SP-challenged non-NS-MPLA-treated, which showed a sharp decline in IL-4 and IL-22 and a minor rise in the rest of the tested gene relative expressions. Chicks given NS-MPLA supplementation showed a significant upregulation of these genes compared to the control group.

conclusionIn this first report on poultry, it is possible to draw the conclusion that NS-MPLA supplementation in SP-infected chicks boosts immunity and provides protection. It promoted bacterial clearance and tissue repair and stimulated the expression of genes linked to immunity and the mucosal surface. These findings suggest the potential application of NS-MPLA in salmonella control programs as an antibiotic substitute or in immunization strategies.

Indexed as

ChickensLipid ANigella sativaPoultry DiseasesSalmonella Infections, AnimalAnimalsAnti-Bacterial AgentsLiposomesPlant OilsSalmonella entericaAnti-Bacterial AgentsLipid ALiposomesmonophosphoryl lipid APlant OilsBroiler chicksIgAMucin-2Nigella sativa MPLA nanoliposomesPro-inflammatory cytokinesSalmonella pullorum

Identifiers

PMID40025471
PMCPMC11874670

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.