Evaluation of oocyst detection and PCR identification of chicken Eimeria species using intestinal contents of the rectum and cecum as different gastrointestinal tracts.

In the present study, intestinal specimens were collected from layer chickens at a poultry slaughterhouse and used to evaluate infection with Eimeria species. Intestinal contents were extracted separately from the rectum (from the duodenum to rectum) and cecum and used for analyses. Using flotation detection methods, the number of eimerian oocysts per gram was higher in the cecum than rectum. Polymerase chain reaction analysis also detected a greater abundance of Eimeria species in the cecum than the rectum. These results suggest that analysis of cecal contents could be more useful for detecting and identifying Eimeria species.