Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40336071›Full record

ArticleJournal of animal science and biotechnology2025

Breed-specific responses to coccidiosis in chickens: identification of intestinal bacteria linked to disease resistance.

Chace Broadwater, Jiaqing Guo, Jing Liu, Isabel Tobin, Melanie A Whitmore, Michael G Kaiser, Susan J Lamont, Guolong Zhang

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of animal science and biotechnology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
5citing 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

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

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

5 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Animals : an open access journal from MDPI · 2026
    Review
  2. Article
  3. Review
  4. Article
  5. Article
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

8 authors.

Chace Broadwater *Department of Animal and Food Sciences, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK, 74078, USA.
Jiaqing Guo *Department of Animal and Food Sciences, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK, 74078, USA.
Jing LiuDepartment of Animal and Food Sciences, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK, 74078, USA.
Isabel TobinDepartment of Animal and Food Sciences, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK, 74078, USA.
Melanie A WhitmoreDepartment of Animal and Food Sciences, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK, 74078, USA.
Michael G KaiserDepartment of Animal Science, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, 50011, USA.
Susan J LamontDepartment of Animal Science, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, 50011, USA.
Guolong ZhangDepartment of Animal and Food Sciences, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK, 74078, USA. zguolon@okstate.edu.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4781-5816

Funding

National Institute of Food and Agriculture 2021-67034-35184National Institute of Food and Agriculture 2022-67016-37208National Institute of Food and Agriculture 2024-67011-42944National Institute of Food and Agriculture 2024-67016-42415
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundCoccidiosis, caused by Eimeria parasites, is a major enteric disease in poultry, significantly impacting animal health, production performance, and welfare. This disease imposes a substantial economic burden, costing the global poultry industry up to $13 billion annually. However, effective mitigation strategies for coccidiosis remain elusive. While different chicken breeds exhibit varying resistance to coccidiosis, no commensal bacteria have been directly linked to this resistance.

methodsTo assess relative resistance of different breeds to coccidiosis, 10-day-old Fayoumi M5.1, Leghorn Ghs6, and Cobb chickens were challenged with 50,000 sporulated Eimeria maxima oocysts or mock-infected. Body weight changes, small intestinal lesions, and fecal oocyst shedding were evaluated on d 17. Ileal and cecal digesta were collected from individual animals on d 17 and subjected to microbiome analysis using 16S rRNA gene sequencing. 

resultsFayoumi M5.1 chickens showed the lowest growth retardation, intestinal lesion score, fecal oocyst shedding, and pathobiont proliferation compared to Ghs6 and Cobb chickens. The intestinal microbiota of M5.1 chickens also differed markedly from the other two breeds under both healthy and coccidiosis conditions. Notably, group A Lactobacillus and Ligilactobacillus salivarius were the least prevalent in both the ileum and cecum of healthy M5.1 chickens, but became highly enriched and comparable to Ghs6 and Cobb chickens in response to coccidiosis. Conversely, Weissella, Staphylococcus gallinarum, and Enterococcus durans/hirae were more abundant in the ileum of healthy M5.1 chickens than in the other two breeds. Despite being reduced by Eimeria, these bacteria retained higher abundance in M5.1 chickens compared to the other breeds.

conclusionsFayoumi M5.1 chickens exhibit greater resistance to coccidiosis than Leghorn Ghs6 layers and Cobb broilers. Several commensal bacteria, including group A Lactobacillus, L. salivarius, Weissella, S. gallinarum, and E. durans/hirae, are differentially enriched in Fayoumi M5.1 chickens with strong correlation with coccidiosis resistance. These bacteria hold potential as probiotics for coccidiosis mitigation.

Indexed as

CoccidiosisEimeriaEnterococcusFayoumiLactic acid bacteriaLactobacillusMicrobiotaProbioticsStaphylococcusWeissella

Identifiers

PMID40336071
PMCPMC12060511

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.