Isolation of Mannheimia haemolytica from Layer Hens Showing
Respiratory Signs
Sajid Umar1,
Sajjad Asif2, Aayesha Riaz1, Muhammad Ali
Abdullah Shah1* and Muhammad Luqman Sohail3
1PMAS
Arid Agriculture University Rawalpindi Pakistan; 2University
of Veterinary & Animal Sciences Lahore, Pakistan 3University College of Veterinary
and Animal Sciences, The Islamia University of Bahawalpur, Pakistan *Corresponding author:alishah521@uaar.edu.pk
Abstract
Mannheimia haemolytica (M. haemolytica)
causes shipping fever and several other respiratory diseases in bovine but its
involvement in diseases of Gallus gallus domesticus is limited to
secondary infections with limited data available from Pakistan. Samples from layer hens showing respiratory clinical signs were
processed for isolation and identification of causative agent through
biochemical and molecular tests and the isolates were further tested for
pathogenicity index. Phylogenetic studies were also done to establish the
phylogeny of circulating species. Our study led to the isolation of a
Gram-negative, non-motile, coccobacillus from the clinical samples and was
identified as M. haemolytica which showed 99% homology with the M.
haemolytica serotype A2 of bovine origin upon sequencing of its 16S rDNA
gene. A single, smooth colony of this bacterium inoculated in five, 7-day-old
embryonated eggs via the yolk sac
route induced hemorrhages and 100% mortality. These results were further
supported by the recovery of bacterium M.
haemolytica from 8
week-old layer hens showing mild clinical signs within 1-week post challenge
with the isolate. Our study provides evidence that M. haemolytica may
cause clinical disease in Gallus gallus domesticus under stressful
conditions and adds to the existing knowledge for differential diagnosis of
respiratory pathogens in poultry.
To Cite This Article: Umar S, Asif S, Riaz A,Ghafar A, Shah MAA and Sohail ML, 2018.
Isolation of Mannheimia haemolytica from layer hens showing respiratory
signs. Pak Vet J, 38(1): 66-70. http://dx.doi.org/10.29261/pakvetj/2018.013