October 31, 2017 by Jan Suszkiw
A new test developed by
Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists in College Station, Texas, could
make it easier to breed pathogen-resistant chickens.
The test identifies roosters whose
blood contains naturally high levels of two key chemicals, cytokines and
chemokines. These chemicals mobilize the birds' innate immune response,
according to ARS microbiologist Christi Swaggerty, in ARS's Food and Feed
Safety Research Unit.
Using the new test, commercial
poultry breeders can single out roosters that have a strong immune response and
use them to selectively breed a more robust flock. Such resistance, especially
during the birds' first week of life, may lower costs related to animal
well-being and food safety.
Protecting chickens from
pathogens involves sanitation, vaccination, biosecurity and use of antibiotics
and other medications. But some chickens have an especially robust and
efficient immune
response and can resist pathogens, notes Swaggerty.
The researchers used the test to
select roosters for breeding a line of resistant broilers. They then exposed
the resistant broilers to several pathogens. They compared the resistant group
to a group of susceptible broilers bred from roosters with low cytokine and
chemokine levels.
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