The Research Will Identify Pathways of Transmission for Poultry Diseases And Improve Food Safety Protocols on Small Antibiotic Free Farms
Image Credit: Edwin Remsberg
As the number of small and medium-sized antibiotic- and chemical-free farms has risen in the U.S., so has the re-emergence of poultry diseases and mortality among chickens raised on these farms. In addition, these farmers face the challenge of producing profitable yields without growth hormones, hormone promoters or chemical additives.
Now, a $650,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute for Food and Agriculture will support a University of Maryland researcher’s work to tackle both issues. Professor Debabrata Biswas from the Department of Animal and Avian Sciences and the Center for Food Safety and Security Systems will investigate the transmission pathways of major bacterial and viral diseases to control mortality in chickens raised on these farms. Biswas will also explore the use of probiotics and prebiotics to enhance poultry immunity and improve growth for greater production.
Biswas is studying two common poultry diseases: infectious coryza caused by Avibacterium paragallinarum (AP) and infectious bronchitis virus (IBV). Recent reports show they are on the rise in backyard farms and small to medium sized integrated farms, which produce a mix of livestock and crops, and tend to use organic farming practices. In addition, many larger farms are moving away from using chemicals or antibiotics and looking for sustainable prevention or therapeutic options.
“The mechanism of transmission is one of the most important questions to answer, especially on these integrated farms,” Biswas said. “Because we have this environment where there are so many microbes, not only chicken microbes, but sheep and pigs, or plant microbes if the farmers are growing vegetables, too. And although we test each for their own type of diseases, these animals and plants are exchanging microbes. So, we need to understand that environment.”
According to Biswas, cross contamination of some microbes may not cause illness in poultry, but they may depress chicken immune systems and make them more susceptible to IBV or AP. Or other animals may be carriers for unusual animal or human pathogens.
Biswas and his colleagues will use genomic analysis from disease samples found on farms to trace the environmental sources of AP and IBV to determine what is causing the rise in these diseases. Their results will help develop science-based biosecurity protocols for reducing transmission.
The second focus of his research will test the effects of various probiotics and plant-based antioxidants on poultry health and immunity. Previous work by Biswas and his former graduate student Serajus Salaheen (‘17) found that adding an extract made from blueberries and blackberries made chicks plumper and decreased the colonization of poultry-borne human pathogens such Campylobacter and Salmonella in their guts.
In this new work, Biswas will feed probiotics and a similar blend of plant-based supplements to day-old chicks and monitor their health and how well their gut microbiomes resist the colonization of AP and IBV.
