Artificial infection of chickens with Capillaria obsignata eggs embryonated in different media.

The present study investigated whether incubation media have an impact on infectivity of Capillaria obsignata eggs in chickens infected with gradually increasing doses. C. obsignata eggs collected from female worms were incubated either in formalin (0.5% or 2%) or in potassium dichromate 0.1% or in sulfuric acid 0.1N for three weeks (wk). One-day-old male chicks (N=92) were reared in a parasite-free environment, and infected with 0, 500, 1000 or 2000 eggs at an age of 3 wk. Post-mortem parasitological examinations were performed on day 28 p.i. Although all the infected birds harboured adult worms, their growth performance was not affected. Furthermore there was no significant interaction effect between incubation media and infection dose on worm establishment rates (P=0.080), while main effects of these two factors were significant (P<0.05). The average number of adult worms found in birds infected with the eggs incubated in potassium dichromate were significantly lower (P<0.001) than in formalin 0.5%, formalin 2% and sulfuric acid 0.1N. A higher (P<0.05) percentage of larvae could establish themselves in the intestines when the birds were infected with 500 eggs (40.5%) instead of 2000 eggs (26.2%), indicating density dependent effects. It is concluded that formalin (particularly 0.5%), and sulfuric acid can successfully be used as incubation media for C. obsignata eggs, whereas potassium dichromate impairs subsequent infectivity of the eggs. Although effects of media on the infectivity of the eggs were confirmed to be fairly repeatable, no harmful effect of infection was quantified on the host animal performance with the infection doses up to 2000 eggs.

The role of culture media on embryonation and subsequent infectivity of Capillaria obsignata eggs.

This study investigated whether infectivity of Capillaria obsignata eggs depends on media culture used for embryonation. Intact female worms were kept in one of following four media: 0.5 % formalin, 2 % formalin, 0.1 % potassium dichromate and 0.1 N sulfuric acid. Embryonation rates of the eggs were quantified either daily in intact females for 16 days, or weekly in disrupted females. Infectivity of the embryonated eggs was tested through an experimental infection of chickens with a single dose of 250 eggs/ bird. The vast majority of the eggs (>82 %) in the first two thirds of the uteri was able to complete embryonation, irrespective of the culture media used for incubation. However, only 32.6 % of total eggs could be harvested after disruption of the intact females. Embryonation rates of the eggs from disrupted worms were different among four culture media, with 0.1 N sulfuric acid resulting in the highest embryonation rate (44.2 %). All the experimentally infected birds harboured mature worms, with varying establishment rates depending on the culture media (P < 0.001). Incubation of the eggs in potassium dichromate 0.1 % resulted in a lower (P < 0.001) establishment rate (10.2 %) when compared with formalin (70.5 and 47.9 % for concentrations at 0.5 and 2 %, respectively) or with 0.1 N sulfuric acid (57.5 %). It can be concluded that most of the eggs in first two thirds of the uteri in the intact females have the potential to complete embryonation without being influenced by the culture media. However, disruption of the intact females results in lower number of harvestable embryonated eggs, with a considerable variation due to culture media used. With the exception of 0.1 % potassium dichromate, any of the three media, particularly 0.1 N sulfuric acid, can be suggested for embryonation of C. obsignata eggs.