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Review
. 2021 Jun 30;11(7):1962.
doi: 10.3390/ani11071962.

In Vitro Assessment of Anticoccidials: Methods and Molecules

Martina Felici  1 , Benedetta Tugnoli  2 , Andrea Piva  1   2 , Ester Grilli  1   3
Affiliations
Review

In Vitro Assessment of Anticoccidials: Methods and Molecules

Martina Felici et al. Animals (Basel). .

Abstract

Avian coccidiosis is a disease causing considerable economic losses in the poultry industry. It is caused by Eimeria spp., protozoan parasites characterized by an exogenous-endogenous lifecycle. In vitro research on these pathogens is very complicated and lacks standardization. This review provides a description of the main in vitro protocols so far assessed focusing on the exogenous phase, with oocyst viability and sporulation assays, and on the endogenous phase, with invasion and developmental assays in cell cultures and in ovo. An overview of these in vitro applications to screen both old and new remedies and to understand the relative mode of action is also discussed.

Keywords: Eimeria; botanicals; cell culture; essential oils; in vitro; invasion assay; poultry.

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Conflict of interest statement

Andrea Piva serves as a professor at the University of Bologna and is a member of the board of directors of Vetagro S.p.A. (Reggio Emilia, Italy), which funded the project. Ester Grilli serves as an advisor of Vetagro.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Schematic representation of coccidian life cycle. Numbers indicate the developmental stages of Eimeria spp. and the host structures involved: (1) unsporulated oocysts; (2) sporulated oocysts; (3) gastrointestinal tract; (4) mechanical rupture of oocysts and sporocyst release; (5) excystation of sporozoites; (6) released sporozoites; (7) enterocytes; (8) trophozoite; (9) mature schizont; (10) merozoites and re-infection of enterocytes; (11) macrogamete; (12) microgamete; (13) zygote.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Schematic representation of an embryonated egg model. The syringe shows the site of inoculation preferred for Eimeria research.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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