Clinicopathological Assessment of Broiler Chickens Challenged with Field Infectious Bursa Disease Virus after Oral Vaccination Using Phytogenic Mucoadhesive Gum

The rising socio‐economic loss incurred from mortalities and disharmonized vaccine control programs in poultry production has necessitated the search of adjuvants especially of natural origin. More so, productivity levels of poultry in many African countries fall far below desirable levels because of the economic losses incurred from chick mortality due to infectious bursa disease (IBD). This study determine the level of immune response conferred by Infectious bursa disease vaccine using a mucoadhesive delivery system from a phytogenic origin using the clinic‐pathological response of broilers vaccinated oraly with IBD vaccine using Khaya senegalensis and Cedrela odorata as phytogenic adjuvants and later challenged with the IBD virus. A total of 260 chicks were successfully brooded and raised from day old. The birds were distributed into four groups A to D with an average of 60 birds per group in a complete randomized block design, as A (Gum + IBD Vaccine oral + Virus challenge), B (IBD Vaccine alone oral + Virus challenge), C (Gum alone oral + Virus challenge) and D (No‐Vaccine‐No‐Gum + Virus challenge). Three birds were euthanised per Group for Serum, tracheal and intestinal washings and lymphoid tissue harvest including haderian gland, thymus, lungs, spleen, ileum, cecal tonsils and bursa of Fabricius pre and post vaccinations and post infection during the 7 weeks experiment. Data was analysed using Graph pad prism 21 at α=0.05. All the birds were apparently healthy pre and post vaccinations. The birds exhibited signs of picking and soiling of the vents and feathers with projectile yellowish diarrhoea few birds post infection (B, D). The feathers were ruffled and mortality varied from 0 to 5 in the non‐vaccinated and gum alone vaccinated birds. Pathologically, there was oedematous, hyperplastic to haemorrhagic changes in the bursa, congestive to hyperplastic changes in the spleen with severity in group D and haemorrhages of breast and pectoral muscles in some of the birds that died post infection. No recumbency was recorded in the birds given gum+IBD vaccine and challenged with live virus. Prophylactic application of IBDV vaccines and the Khaya senegalensis gum as phytogenic adjuvants enhanced the chicks immune response and provided protection against IBD. This abstract is from the Experimental Biology 2019 Meeting. There is no full text article associated with this abstract published in The FASEB Journal .