What is active immunity in Poultry birds? Decoding Active Immunity: Essential Insights for Poultry Birds, April 2024

What is active Immunity in Poultry Birds? Read the article to know more about the Immunity and the different types of immunity in the poultry birds.

Understanding Active Immunity in Poultry Birds

Before we come the the question that what is active immunity in poultry birds we must know what is immunity and how it helps the birds to fight against the diseases. The active immunity is a crucial aspect of maintaining the health and productivity of poultry birds.

It refers to the immune response that is developed when an animal is exposed to pathogens (disease-causing organisms) or to a vaccine, stimulating the bird’s immune system to recognize and defend against specific pathogens in future encounters.

In poultry, effective active immunity not only ensures the well-being of individual birds but also enhances flock health, reduces outbreaks of disease, and improves overall production efficiency. This article delves into the mechanisms of active immunity in poultry, its importance, how it can be induced, and the challenges associated with it.

Mechanisms of Active Immunity

Active immunity in poultry operates through two main mechanisms: humoral and cell-mediated immunity.

Humoral Immunity:

This involves the production of antibodies by B cells (a type of white blood cell). Antibodies are proteins that specifically recognize and bind to foreign molecules (antigens) such as viruses and bacteria, neutralizing them or marking them for destruction by other immune cells.

Cell-mediated Immunity:

This involves T cells, another type of lymphocyte, which play a role in killing infected cells, activating other immune cells, and regulating immune responses.

When a pathogen invades a poultry bird, these immune mechanisms work together to fight the infection and remember the pathogen’s specific antigens. If the bird encounters the same pathogen later, its immune system can quickly respond, preventing or mitigating illness.

Importance of Active Immunity in Poultry

What is active immunity in poultry birds. Active immunity is vital for several reasons:

Disease Resistance:

Actively immunized birds are better equipped to fight off infections, reducing morbidity and mortality rates.

Herd Immunity:

When a large proportion of the flock has active immunity, the spread of infectious diseases is significantly reduced.

Long-term Protection:

Unlike passive immunity, which provides immediate but short-term protection, active immunity can last for months or years, offering prolonged protection against diseases.

Cost-Effectiveness:

Vaccination to induce active immunity is often more cost-effective than treating outbreaks of disease.

What is active immunity in poultry birds. Inducing Active Immunity.

What is active immunity in poultry birds. Active immunity can be induced in two primary ways:

1. Natural Exposure: Birds develop immunity naturally when exposed to the live pathogen. This method, however, poses a risk of causing disease before immunity develops.
2. Vaccination: Vaccines contain killed or weakened pathogens, or parts of pathogens, that do not cause disease but do stimulate an immune response. Vaccination is a safe and controlled way to induce active immunity without the risk of disease. In poultry, vaccines are delivered in various forms, including injection, aerosols, oral drops, or added to drinking water.

Challenges and Considerations

What is active immunity in poultry birds. Despite its benefits, establishing effective active immunity in poultry faces several challenges:

• Variability in Immune Response: Individual birds may respond differently to a vaccine or pathogen due to genetic differences, environmental stressors, or nutritional status.
• Immune Suppression: Factors such as poor management, high stocking density, and concurrent diseases can suppress the immune system, reducing vaccine efficacy.
• Pathogen Evolution: The evolution of new strains of pathogens can render existing vaccines less effective, necessitating ongoing research and vaccine updates.

Active Immunity

Natural infection, or vaccination with either live or killed vaccines, stimulates active immunity. Antibody levels are normally very high after field exposure, or vaccination and Virus neutralizing antibody titres greater than 1:1000 are common.