Influence of Bordetella avium infection on association of Escherichia coli with turkey trachea

Four-week-old Bordetella avium-infected and B avium-free turkeys were inoculated intratracheally with a suspension of fimbriated or nonfimbriated Escherichia coli. Numbers of E coli associated with tracheal sections were determined at postinoculation hour (PIH) 1 or 6. Significantly (P less than 0.05) greater numbers of E coli were isolated from the tracheas of B avium-infected turkeys compared with numbers in B avium-free turkeys. In B avium-free turkeys, tracheal associated E coli were 90% less at PIH 6 compared with that at PIH 1. However, in B avium-infected turkeys, numbers of E coli were not affected by postinoculation time. Seemingly, B avium-infected turkeys had reduced capacity to clear E coli from the trachea.