The Prevalence of netB Gene in Isolated Clostridium perfringens From Organic Broiler Farms Suspected to Necrotic Enteritis

Clostridium perfringens causes necrotic enteritis (NE) and NetB is a critical pore-forming toxin in the development of this disease in chickens.
The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of C. perfringens in organic broiler farms and to assess the presence of netB gene among isolates and its occurrence with respect to NE disease.
A total of 103 intestinal samples (from eight farms clinically suspected to NE) were collected and evaluated by biochemical tests and polymerase chain reaction (PCR).
Genotyping results showed the prevalence of 43.69% (n = 45) for C. perfringens. All isolates belonged to type A, and other toxinotypes of bacterium were not detected. Eight isolates (17.78%) from four farms were positive for netB gene. The present study represented the prevalence of the netB gene for the first time in organic broiler farms.
The results indicate that the role of netB in the induction of NE needs to be further investigated, to clarify the role of C. perfringens as commensal or pathogenic and to authorize a much better correlation between gene expression of netB toxin and the pathogenic capacity of C. perfringens strains from organic systems.