Abstract
Parasiticidal fungi have been used in several in vivo experiments in livestock farms worldwide, constituting an effective tool for the biocontrol of gastrointestinal parasites in grazing animals. In the first year of study, two groups of eight first-season pasturing ewe lambs infected by strongyles were dewormed with albendazole, and then, the test group received an oral dose of 106 chlamydospores of Mucor circinelloides and 106 Duddingtonia flagrans individually and thrice a week from mid-September to May (FS1), while the control group remained without fungi (CT1). In the second year, two new groups of first-season grazing ewe lambs were treated with ivermectin and subjected to the same experimental design (FS2 and CT2, respectively). The anthelmintic efficacy was 96.6% (CT1), 95.6% (FS1), 96.1% (CT2), and 95.1% (FS2). The counts of strongyle egg output increased in the control groups (CT1 and CT2) throughout the study and reached numbers higher than 600 eggs per gram of feces (EPG), while in FS1 and FS2, they were <250 EPG. The values of red blood cell parameters registered for CT1 and CT2 were lower than those of the reference standards, while a significant increment was recorded in FS1 and FS2, and values within the physiological range were attained. It is concluded that integrating efficient anthelminthic deworming with rotational pasturing and the regular intake of chlamydospores of M. circinelloides and D. flagrans provides a helpful strategy for maintaining low levels of strongyle egg output in first-season grazing ewe lambs and improves their health status.
Highlights
Livestock management in pasturing regimes ensures the nutrition of the livestock but involves a risk of infection by different parasites affecting the gastrointestinal tract
For the purpose of reducing their impact, deworming is administered regularly, but any action on the free-living life stages is rarely considered. This situation frequently results in a notable misuse of efficient dewormers, i.e., incorrect dosing and/or increased frequency of administration, which can lead to the occurrence of anthelmintic resistance [3]
The data acquired in the current research led us to conclude that integrating deworming and the regular intake of chlamydospores of M. circinelloides and D. flagrans provides a helpful tool for maintaining low levels of strongyle egg output in first-season grazing ewe lambs and improves their health status
Summary
Livestock management in pasturing regimes ensures the nutrition of the livestock but involves a risk of infection by different parasites affecting the gastrointestinal tract. The in-soil development of certain species of gastrointestinal parasites from oocysts and eggs passed in the feces of infected animals to the environment is responsible for the infection of herbivores while grazing [1]. For the purpose of reducing their impact, deworming is administered regularly, but any action on the free-living life stages is rarely considered. This situation frequently results in a notable misuse of efficient dewormers, i.e., incorrect dosing and/or increased frequency of administration, which can lead to the occurrence of anthelmintic resistance [3]. Major threats to animal production are expected in the near future, and the situation seems likely to worsen due to the economic difficulties involved in the development of new anthelmintic drugs
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