ADVERSE EFFECT ON IMMUNITY AND PERFORMANCE OF BROILER CHICKENS DIPPED IN SOME PESTICIDES

Humoral and cellular immunologic responses as well as haemogram studies of the chickens were investigated. after dipping in carbamate insecticide, carbofuran and pyrethroid insecticide, cypermethrin. Carbofuran exerts humoral immunotropic effect indicated by lowering hemagglutination inhibition (HI) antibody titre against Newcastle disease (ND) vaccinated chickens and lowering resistance egainst virulent Newcastle disease (NDV) challenge virus. Cypermethrin treated group chickens showed a slight immunogenic effect in comparison with the control group. Cellular immunity represented by lymphocytes, thymocytes and spleenocytes numbers were dramatically reduced in the carbofuran and cypermethrin birds in relation to nontreated control ones. Haematological examination was run parallelly with immunological investigations. Haemoglobin percentage (Hb), packed cell volume (PCV), red blood cell count (RBCs), and white blood cell count (WRCs) were measured. Mean corpuscular volume (MCV), mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH) and mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC) were calculated. The weekly body weight gain and organ-body relative weight of bursa of Fabricious (BF), thymus and spleen were significantly reduced in carbofuran treated chickens than in cypermethrin treated ones. Our data indicates that chickens exposed to carbofuran and cypermethrin insecticides are less able to mount a normal antibody responce and cellular immunity to viral vaccines as well as adverse effect on hematological parameters.