Selection for early (precocious) development of Eimeria meleagridis in the turkey.

A precocious line of Eimeria meleagridis was developed by repeated propagation of the parasite in young turkeys and collection of the very first oocysts produced following infection. After 20 generations of selection, the prepatent period was reduced by 4-8 hr. Weight gain of poults given this line, from days 0-3 after infection, was significantly greater than that of poults given the parental strain, indicating that selection resulted in a loss of pathogenicity. Poults immunized with the precocious line produced no oocysts following challenge with the parental strain, indicating that immunogenicity was retained following selection. This is the first published report of the selection of a precocious line of Eimeria in the turkey.