Coccidiosis is the bane of the poultry industry causing considerable economic loss. Eimeria species are known as protozoan parasites to cause morbidity and death in poultry. In addition to anticoccidial chemicals and vaccines, natural products are emerging as an alternative and complementary way to control avian coccidiosis. In this review, we update recent advances in the use of anticoccidial phytoextracts and phytocompounds, which cover 32 plants and 40 phytocompounds, following a database search in PubMed, Web of Science, and Google Scholar. Four plant products commercially available for coccidiosis are included and discussed. We also highlight the chemical and biological properties of the plants and compounds as related to coccidiosis control. Emphasis is placed on the modes of action of the anticoccidial plants and compounds such as interference with the life cycle of Eimeria, regulation of host immunity to Eimeria, growth regulation of gut bacteria, and/or multiple mechanisms. Biological actions, mechanisms, and prophylactic/therapeutic potential of the compounds and extracts of plant origin in coccidiosis are summarized and discussed.

Eimeriosis is a severe protozoan disease in poultry. Because of increasing concern about drug residue and drug resistance with the use of anticoccidial drugs, natural products are emerging as an alternative and complementary approach to control avian eimeriosis. Our previous publication showed that feed supplemented with B. pilosa (BP) was effective at combating chicken eimeriosis in experimental settings. However, its efficacy against chicken eimeriosis under field conditions is not known. Here, we investigated the efficacy of BP against eimeriosis on an organic chicken farm. We found that feed supplemented with BP, at the dose of 0.025% of feed or more, significantly reduced Eimeria infection. This treatment increased body weight gain and reduced feed conversion ratio, leading to superior growth performance. It lowered morbidity/mortality rate, decreased oocysts per gram of feces and gut pathology and augmented the anticoccidial index. Collectively, these data demonstrated the potential of BP to control chicken eimeriosis on chicken farms. BP can, therefore, be used as an effective means to control eimeriosis.