STUDIES ON INTESTINAL CLOSTRIDIAL INFECTIONS IN BROILER CHICKENS

Abstract

A total of 470 intestines of freshly dead and sacrificed broiler chickens aged 2 - 7- weeks - old collected from Assiut and El-Minia provinces. Samples were classified to 3 major groups according to intestinal lesions and coccidial infestation. Collected samples were examined bacteriologically for possible recovery of Clostridium. According to morphological characters and biochemical reactions,

231 clostridium isolates were successfully isolated with an incidence of

49.1%: 166 Cl. perfringens isolates (71.9%); 33 Cl. colinum isolates (14.3%); 30 Cl. sporogenes isolates (12.9%) and 2 isolates of Cl.spiroforme 0.9%). The incidence of Clostridium among the groups of birds of different ages were investigated: Group I : Birds showing enteritis and negative for coccidiosis, out of

89 cases revealed recovery of 53 clostridium isolates (59.5%):

47 Cl. perfringens isolates; 2 Cl. colinum isolates and 4 isolates of Cl. sporogenes. • Group II • : Birds showing enteritis and positive for coccidiosis, out of

196 cases revealed recovery of 127 clostridium isolates

(64.8%): 91 Cl. perfringens isolates; 17 Cl. colinum isolates;

18 Cl. sporogenes isolates and 1 isolate of Cl. spirofonne. Group III : Birds with grossly normal intestine, out of 185 cases revealed recovery of 51 clostridium isolates (27.6%): 28 Cl. perfringens isolates; 14 CI. colinum isolates; 8 Cl. sporogenes isolates and 1 isolate of Cl. spiroforme.