Morphological characterisation of intestinal lesions in diarrhoea caused by isospora suis in sucking pigs

摘要

Neonatal coccidiosis is the most important protozoal disease of swine and Isospora suis is the main cause of neonatal porcine coccidiosis. The disease has a comopolitan distribution and it is found anywhere pigs are raised in confinement. Piglets develop diarrhoea at 7 to 14 days of age. The diarrhoea is initially pasty but becomes fluid after 2 or 3 days. The faeces are yellowish lo grey in colour and blood is never present. Infections fail to respond to commonly used antibiotics and piglets withina litter, and litters are not equally affected. Microscopic changes described include villous atrophy, villous fusion, necrotic enteritis, and crypt hyperplasia. The weight gains of infected pigs are depressed. The goal of this study was to characterisemorphological lesions caused by I. suis in naturally infected nursery pigs.