Genetic resistance to Ascaridia galli infections in chickens.
- Resource Type
- Academic Journal
- Authors
- Permin A; Department of Veterinary Microbiology, Section for Parasitology, The Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University, Bülowsvej 13, 1870 Frederiksberg C, Denmark. ape@kvl.dk; Ranvig H
- Source
- Publisher: Elsevier Country of Publication: Netherlands NLM ID: 7602745 Publication Model: Print Cited Medium: Print ISSN: 0304-4017 (Print) Linking ISSN: 03044017 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Vet Parasitol Subsets: MEDLINE
- Subject
- Language
- English
- ISSN
- 0304-4017
Ascaridiosis is still a cause of economic losses in modern poultry production systems. Improving genetic resistance to this disease provides an attractive alternative for free-range organic poultry producers and will eventually reduce the extensive use of anthelmintic drugs. An experiment was conducted to compare resistance to Ascaridia galli infections in Lohman Brown (LB) and Danish Landrace (DL) chickens. A self-cure mechanism to A. galli infections was observed in both breeds. However, significantly higher worm burdens and egg excretion were seen in the DL compared to LB chickens during primary infection. This indicates that breeding for resistance to A. galli is possible in chickens.