Ornithobacterium rhinotracheale, a primary pathogen in broilers
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Updated: Oct 9, 2026

Production of Germ-Free Fast-Growing Broilers from a Commercial Line for Microbiota Studies
Published on: June 18, 2020
L van Veen1, C P van Empel, T Fabria
1Animal Health Service, Poultry Section, Deventer, The Netherlands.
Abstract:
Field strains of Ornithobacterium rhinotracheale were tested on their virulence in different chicken breeds. Ornithobacterium rhinotracheale was able to induce lesions after aerosol challenge without a previous priming with virus, and thus O. rhinotracheale was proven to be a primary pathogen. The virulence of Dutch strains, isolated between 1995 and 1998, did not increase, but the Dutch isolates and a South African strain were more pathogenic compared with an American strain of O. rhinotracheale. White specific-pathogen-free leghorns were less susceptible to O. rhinotracheale infection than broilers, whereas there was no difference in susceptibility between commercial broilers and specific-pathogen-free broilers.
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