Gut health in poultry: research from a Kemin scientist

SINGAPORE - June 15, 2009 - Kemin Industries research shows its novel Bacillus subtilis PB6 strain can be utilized to combat Clostridial infections in broilers.

 Necrotic enteritis (NE) is an enterotoxemic disease caused by Clostridium perfringens.  Clostridial infections can lead to the development of necrotic lesions in the gut wall resulting in poor animal performance and mortality of poultry. 

 Antibiotics have been commonly used to prevent necrotic enteritis; however, the extensive use of antibiotics in chickens and turkeys has resulted in the isolation of antibiotic-resistant strains of C. perfringens.  With poultry producers looking for an alternative method to prevent necrotic enteritis, Kemin isolated a naturally occurring strain of Bacillus subtilis from the intestinal tract of a healthy chicken.

 This patented proprietary strain, Bacillus subtilis PB6, was selected for its inhibitory effect against various strains of C. perfringens, which have been shown to cause necrotic enteritis in poultry.  Bacillus subtilis is a fast-growing micro-organism that is stable up to 121°C.

 The Bacillus subtilis strain is incorporated into the product, CloSTAT^®, and has been fed to broilers in numerous research trials.  Significant reduction in both ileal and faecal populations of Clostridium spp. were found which confirm the in vitro anti-clostridial results. Additionally, the intestinal populations of beneficial bacteria such as Lactobacillus spp. and Bifidobacterium spp. were maintained with CloSTAT^® inclusions.  

 During a research trial conducted in the United States, CloSTAT^® was fed to broilers challenged with C. perfringens/Eimeria spp., over a 27-d period, to induce the condition of necrotic enteritis.  CloSTAT^®, at all doses, proved as efficacious (P<0.05) in protecting the broilers against necrotic enteritis as the antibiotic BMD, and was not significantly different from uninfected positive controls.  

 In this trial, mortality due to necrotic enteritis of the BMD antibiotic birds was not significantly different from any of the CloSTAT^® treatments. Birds fed CloSTAT^® had body weight gain and feed conversion ratios that were not significantly different (P<0.05) from those receiving the BMD antibiotic and the uninfected controls.

 The overall results indicate that the novel Bacillus subtilis PB6 strain in CloSTAT^® is effective against clostridial infections and in reducing mortality and related production losses due to necrotic enteritis.