Vaccines against Escherichia coli cellulitis and respiratory/septicemic disease in broiler chickens

This study assessed the protection induced by IutA, FimH, PapG and LPS vaccines against E. coli cellulitis and respiratory/septicemic disease in chickens. Injection of chickens with immunoglobulin Y (IgY) extracted from eggs laid by vaccinated hens demonstrated that anti-PapG and anti-FimH IgY protected against homologous and heterologous E. coli cellulitis challenge, whereas anti-IutA and anti-LPS protected against homologous challenge only. Chickens hatched from eggs laid by vaccinated breeders were protected against homologous but not heterologous cellulitis challenge at 3 weeks of age. There was no protection of commercial broiler chickens that were actively immunized at 1 and 10 days of age and challenged at 30 days of age. In challenges that produced respiratory/septicemic disease, chickens hatched from eggs laid by vaccinated hens were not protected, and only the PapG antigen induced protection in chickens that were immunized at 1 and 10 days of age then challenged at 30 days.