Effects of Eimeria maxima and Clostridium perfringens infections on cecal microbial composition and their possible correlations with body weight gain in broiler chickens

With the voluntary and regulatory withdrawal of antibiotic growth promoters from animal feed, Eimeria spp.-causing coccidiosis and Clostridium perfringens (CP)-causing necrotic enteritis (NE) emerge as the top two enteric infectious diseases responsible for major economic loss worldwide. The objective of this study was to reveal the relationship between the cecal microbiota composition with the growth rate after these two infections. In this study, the effects of Eimeria maxima and/or Clostridium perfringens infections on the microbial composition and its correlation with body weight gain were investigated in broiler chickens using 16S rRNA gene sequencing.