Abstract
Flagellates from the caeca of a diseased hen and a diseased goose were transmitted to 35 specific pathogen-free (SPF) chickens. The flagellates of chicken origin were identified asChilomastix gallinarum, Tritrichomonas eberthi, andTetratrichomonas gallinarum. T. eberthi was not detected in the material of goose origin. Morphologic studies did not reveal any differences betweenChilomastix andTetratrichomonas specimens from chicken or goose origin. The species from the goose were identified asC. gallinarum andT. galliarum (Syn.T. anseris Hegner, 1929). Both trichomonad species produced pseudocysts that developed in the faeces of chickens within 3 h after excretion. Only 17% of the trichomonads excreted had reached the pseudocyst stage. All three flagellate species are infective to chickens when inoculated per rectum or per os or when consumed with chlorinated tap water. The prepatency period was always <24 h. SPF chickens between 2 and 30 days of age were equally susceptible. The infections persisted at a high level of intensity throughout the observation periods, i.e. up to 7 months. Of 35 inoculated SPF chickens, 2 developed disease (emaciation, ruffled feathers, diarrhoea, dilatation of the caeca). The three flagellate species were cultivated in Diamond's medium for 110 days. Cryopreserved and cultivated flagellates retained their infectivity to chickens.
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Dedicated to Prof. Dr. J. Eckert on the occasion of his 60th birthday
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Friedhoff, K.T., Kuhnigk, C. & Müller, I. Experimental infections in chickens withChilomastix gallinarum, Tetratrichomonas gallinarum, andTritrichomonas eberthi . Parasitol Res 77, 329–334 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00930910
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00930910