Co-infection increases avian colibacillosis fatality rate

A new study published in Avian Pathology has revealed that colibacillosis has a higher rate of fatality in poultry when the birds are also infected with a particular strain of Enterococcus.

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sansubba | iStock.com
sansubba | iStock.com

A new study published in Avian Pathology has revealed that colibacillosis has a higher rate of fatality in poultry when the birds are also infected with a particular strain of Enterococcus.

Colibacillosis is an infection caused by avian pathogenic E. coli (APEC), resulting in septicemia, organ failure and death and costing the U.S. poultry industry millions of dollars a year in losses.

“We have this list of bacterial pathogens that we know a lot about that have had a significant and detrimental impact on the industry. Salmonella is the big food safety one, but it seems that colibacillosis takes the cake for the one that has the most direct effect on the health of the birds,” said Grayson Walker, a combined DVM and Ph.D. student in Dr. Luke Borst’s laboratory at North Carolina State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine and first author of the study

“It’s gotten a lot of attention, but one thing that’s not received as much attention is the role of other bacterial pathogens with E. coli and cases of co-infection.”

More about the study

Over a three-year period, the researchers cultured post-mortem samples from birds suspected to have colibacillosis. They found that, in many cases, both Enterococcus faecalis (EF) bacteria and APEC, were found in many of the samples, leading them to hypothesize that co-infection with both bacteria may increase the mortality rate of the birds compared to infection with a single strain.

Next, they created an embryo infection model, where embryos were exposed to EF, APEC or both. Co-infection with both APEC and EF resulted in a 95% mortality rate, much higher than infection with either EF (32%) or APEC (59%).

The researchers hope to build on this research with further investigation on the synergies between these pathogens in colibacillosis and other infections.

“With the increased pressures, we’re discovering that there are these interactions that we haven’t thought of before,” Luke Borst, associate professor of veterinary anatomic pathology, explained. “We focus in medicine quite a bit on individual agents, but these complex interactions are the future.”

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