Avian necrotic enteritis: experimental models, host immunity, pathogenesis, risk factors, and vaccine development

The increasing trends of legislative restrictions and voluntary removal of antibiotic growth promoters worldwide has already affected, and will continue to affect, poultry production and animal health. Necrotic enteritis (NE) is being considered among the most important infectious diseases in the current poultry production system globally, with an estimated annual economic loss of more than $2 billion, largely attributable to medical treatments and impaired growth performance. Thus, there is an urgent need to develop rational, alternative, and integrated management strategies not only to control NE, but also to prevent it. In both humans and many warm-blooded animals and birds, NE is caused by Clostridium perfringens, a gram-positive, anaerobic, spore-forming bacterium. To accomplish these goals, better understanding of host- and environmentally related factors on the development of NE and potential vaccination strategies against C. perfringens infection will be necessary. Furthermore, a reliable and reproducible NE disease model is needed for characterization of C. perfringens pathogenesis and host protective immunity. This review summarizes recent developments in NE disease models, pathogenesis, host immunity, risk factors, and vaccine development for C. perfringens-associated NE in poultry.