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A landmark contribution to poultry science—Prophylactic control of coccidiosis in poultry¹

Department of Poultry Science, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville 72701

² Corresponding author: dchapman{at}uark.edu

"Continuous feeding of low concentrations of sulfaquinoxaline for the control of coccidiosis in poultry" by L. C. Grumbles, J. P. Delaplane, and T. C. Higgins [Poult. Sci. (1948) 27:605–608] was the first paper to demonstrate that it was possible to control coccidiosis by the continuous inclusion of a low level of a drug in the feed of chickens. The principle involved (prevention or prophylaxis) has had a profound impact on our ability to grow chickens and turkeys under intensive conditions. Indeed, it is possible that the modern poultry industry could never have developed to its present extent without the advent of drugs used prophylactically to control coccidiosis. One particular insight was that use of a compound in this manner did not necessarily prevent the acquisition of immunity, an important principle that helps explain the continued efficacy of ionophorous antibiotics used today. The significance of this work to the poultry industry and individuals involved in research, whether employed by government, academia, or pharmaceutical companies, cannot be overstated. Economic benefits, in terms of improved productivity, have been demonstrated in numerous studies published in Poultry Science. In addition, the livelihoods of many poultry farmers have been helped by the control of a disease that in the past caused substantial morbidity and mortality in their flocks. The paper is brief and contains no critical science involving novel procedures but has had a profound influence on the health of poultry for the last 6 decades. For this reason, it is nominated as a landmark contribution from the first 100 yr of Poultry Science.

Key Words: coccidiosis • Eimeria • poultry • prophylaxis • control

¹ Presented as part of the Landmark Symposium, July 22, 2008, at the Poultry Science Association meeting, Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada.