Inhibitory effects of competitive exclusion and fructooligosaccharide, singly and in combination, on Salmonella colonization of chicks

The inhibitory effects of competitive exclusion (CE) and 0.1% concentration of fructooligosaccharide (FOS), singly and in combination, on Salmonella colonization of chicks were investigated. Moreover, quantitation of the major cecal flora (Bifidobacterium, Bacteroides, Lactobacillus, and Escherichia coli) was performed. One-day-old birds were divided into four groups: (i) control, (ii) CE, (iii) FOS, and (iv) CE plus FOS. Chicks received Salmonella Enteritidis at 7 days (experiment 1) or 21 days (experiment 2). Birds in each group were killed at 1 day, 7 days, and 14 days after inoculation of Salmonella Enteritidis for count of salmonella in cecal contents. In experiment 1, the mean number of Salmonella Enteritidis in the chicks inoculated with CE was significantly decreased compared with the other three groups at 1 day postinoculation. In experiment 2, the mean numbers of Salmonella Enteritidis in the chicks of the FOS group and the FOS plus CE group were significantly decreased compared with the control group at 1 day and 7 days postinoculation. On 7- and 21-day-old chicks, few changes on number of total bacteria, Bifidobacterium, Bacteroides, Lactobacillus, and E. coli were observed in the cecal contents of treated groups compared with the control group. Low-dose feeding of FOS in the diet of chicks with a CE treatment may result in reduced susceptibility to Salmonella colonization but may not lead to a shift in the intestinal gut microflora on 7- and 21-day-old chicks.