A Review on Aspergillosis in Poultry

Aspergillosis is non-contagious disease of avian. It is cuased by a fungal species under the genus Aspergillus. The disease occursunder immune compromised situations of the host or when the bird is exposed toan overwhelming number of spores. Stress is the main predisposing factor for the development of the disease. It is a common mismanagement problem in commercial and back yard poultry. The disease primarily affects lower respiratory system .

Aspergillus spp can penetrate egg shell and infect the embryo. The infected embryo may die or hatch with well developed lesion. Ifinfected eggs are broken, large numbers of spores are released, whichcontaminate the hatchery equipment. Aspergillosis can be acute or chronic form. Acute aspergillosis generally occurs in young birds and resulting in high morbidity and mortality. The chronic form is sporadic and it causes lesser mortality and generally affects older birds, especially a compromised immune system due to poor husbandry condition