Periodicity of <i>Ascaridia galli</i> egg excretion in experimentally infected chicken in the Philippines.

Abstract

The periodicity of parasite egg excretion refers to variations in the number of eggs produced across time, with significant implications in optimizing diagnostic procedures and conducting the Fecal Egg Count Reduction Test (FECRT). Here, we explore whether <i>Ascaridia galli</i> egg excretion varies across time under Philippine conditions, thus informing the best time to collect fecal samples during flock health examination. A time-course analysis was performed in chickens (N = 12) experimentally infected with <i>A. galli</i>, isolated from a naturally infected Philippine native chicken. We examined the fecal egg per gram (EPG) count at 3-h intervals for 3 days, starting from 5:00-6:00 h AM to the following day at 1:00-2:00 h AM. Our results showed a consistent daily egg excretion pattern with a peak EPG count in the morning that abruptly declined in the afternoon and lowest in the evening. The EPG counts correlated with the amount of excreta produced, suggesting that <i>A. galli</i> fecundity corresponds to the timing of host defecation. Our results imply that the best time to collect fecal samples for <i>A. galli</i> diagnosis and FECRT in Philippine conditions should be from sunrise until late morning when parasite EPG count and host excreta production are at their highest.