article · Frontiers in Veterinary Science
Avian coccidiosis is a major parasitic disease affecting poultry, and existing chemical treatments often cause side effects and lead to drug resistance. Researchers evaluated the plant-derived organosulfur compound S-Methylcysteine, naturally present in garlic, as a potential alternative therapy against Eimeria tenella infection in broiler chickens. Two-week-old birds received either low or high doses of S-Methylcysteine, alongside control groups and a group treated with the standard drug diclazuril. The natural compound demonstrated potent anticoccidial activity by significantly lowering oocyst counts. It also helped restore key biochemical, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant markers within the cecal tissues back toward healthy levels. Microscopic examination of the tissue confirmed that the treatment alleviated damage caused by the parasite. The compound shows promise as a plant-based intervention for managing coccidiosis in broilers through its combined antiparasitic, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory actions.
Avian coccidiosis causes severe intestinal damage in poultry, threatening animal welfare and flock productivity. Conventional pharmaceutical treatments frequently suffer from declining efficacy as parasites evolve drug resistance. Finding natural, plant-based alternatives such as garlic-derived S-Methylcysteine provides a potential route to protect chickens from parasitic infection while supporting tissue recovery through antioxidant and anti-inflammatory mechanisms.
This research could support veterinary pharmaceutical firms and poultry health product manufacturers seeking plant-based alternatives or adjuncts to existing anticoccidial drugs. The compound could eventually be developed as a poultry feed additive or therapeutic formulation. Because this work represents applied animal testing in a small cohort of broilers, the technology is at an early experimental stage, requiring further mechanistic investigation and trials combining it with conventional treatments before commercial use.
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Avian coccidiosis is one of the major parasitic diseases in the poultry industry. The infection is caused by <i>Eimeria</i> species, and its treatment relies mainly on the administration of anticoccidial drugs, which can result in drug resistance and side effects. The recent trends in avian coccidiosis treatment is directed to the development of a new therapy using herbal compounds. S-Methylcysteine (SMC) is considered one of the organosulfur compounds in garlic that showed promising activity in the treatment of different pathological conditions <i>via</i> a wide range of anti-inflammatory and antioxidant mechanisms. In this study, the anticoccidial activity of SMC was investigated in <i>Eimeria tenella</i>-infected chickens compared to diclazuril as a widely used anticoccidial drug. In this regard, 14-day-old broilers were divided into six groups (<i>n</i> = 18). The first group (G1) was the healthy control group, while the second group (G2) was the non-infected SMC group treated at a dose of 50 mg/kg b.w. (high dose). Moreover, the third group (G3) was the positive control group (infected and non-treated). The fourth group (G4) was the infected group treated with SMC of 25 mg/kg b.w. (low dose), while the fifth group (G5) was the infected group treated with SMC of 50 mg/kg b.w. (high dose). Conversely, the sixth group (G6) was the diclazuril-treated group. The anticoccidial effects of SMC and diclazuril were evaluated by counting oocysts and recording the body weight gain, feed conversion ratio, clinical signs, lesions, and mortality rate. Interestingly, SMC showed potent anticoccidial activity, which was exemplified by reduction of oocyst count. Furthermore, the biochemical, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory parameters in the cecal tissues were restored toward their control levels in G4, G5, and G6. Histopathological observation of cecal tissues was consistent with the aforementioned results revealing the ameliorative effect of SMC against <i>E. tenella</i> infection. This study concluded novel findings in relation to the anticoccidial role of SMC as a plant-based compound against the <i>E. tenella</i>-induced coccidiosis in broiler chickens combined with its antioxidative and anti-inflammatory properties. Further studies for exploring the mechanistic pathways involved in this activity and the potential benefits from its use in association with conventional anticoccidial drugs are warranted.
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DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2021.754991
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