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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Athens, Georgia » U.S. National Poultry Research Center » Quality and Safety Assessment Research Unit » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #410190
Research Project: Assessment of Quality Attributes of Poultry Products, Grain, Seed, Nuts, and Feed

Location: Quality and Safety Assessment Research Unit

Title: Profile of blood microbiota in broiler chickens with different foot pad dermatitis scores

Author
item CHOI, JANGHAN - Oak Ridge Institute For Science And Education (ORISE)
item GOO, DOYUN - University Of Georgia
item Kong, Byungwhi
item Bowker, Brian
item Zhuang, Hong
item KIM, WOO KYUN - University Of Georgia

Submitted to: International Poultry Scientific Forum
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 11/30/2023
Publication Date: 1/29/2024
Citation: Choi, J., Goo, D., Kong, B.C., Bowker, B.C., Zhuang, H., Kim, W. 2024. Profile of blood microbiota in broiler chickens with different foot pad dermatitis scores. International Poultry Scientific Forum. No. P233: 74.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: While blood has traditionally been considered sterile, blood microbiota could be an important indicator of systemic health in broiler chickens. Foot pad dermatitis (FPD) is a common condition in broiler chickens raised in floor pens. It is hypothesized that bacteria from the litter can infiltrate the foot pad lesion, leading to secondary infections by altering blood microbiota and increasing blood bacterial toxins in broiler chickens. The purpose of this study was to investigate the profile of blood microbiota in broiler chickens with different FPD scores. On D 42, blood was collected from broilers (N = 4) with different FPD scores (0: no lesion, 1: FPD covers less than 50% of the food pad, and 2: FPD covers more than 50% of the food pad), and DNA was extracted from the buffy coats and analyzed to determine blood microbiota by using 16s rRNA sequencing. PROC MIXED in SAS was used for group comparison, and orthogonal polynomial contrasts were used to evaluate the significance of linear or quadratic effects of FPD. Alpha and beta diversity of blood microbial communities was not affected by FPD (P > 0.1). The phyla Proteobacteria, Cyanobacteria, Actinobacteria, Firmicutes, and Bacteroidetes in this order were the most abundant groups in the blood microbial communities of broiler chickens without FPD. In the blood microbial communities of broiler chickens with FPD score 1 and 2, the phyla Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria, Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, and Cyanobacteria in this order were the most abundant groups. The FPD tended to linearly decrease the relative abundance of the phylum of Cyanobacteria in the blood microbial communities of broiler chickens (P = 0.058). However, no statistical differences were observed in the other phylum groups and in the family groups (P > 0.1). The serum endotoxin level tended to be linearly increased due to FPD in broiler chickens (P = 0.059). In conclusion, FPD did not significantly influence blood microbiota in broiler chickens.