Bioverm® in the Control of Nematodes in Beef Cattle Raised in the Central-West Region of Brazil

Abstract

Cooperia, Haemonchus and Oesophagostomum are the genera of gastrointestinal parasitic nematodes most prevalent in cattle and constitute a serious problem in cattle breeding due to the impact they have on meat and milk production and the high costs of control measures. The objective of the present work was to evaluate the efficiency of Bioverm® (Duddingtonia flagrans) in the control of gastrointestinal parasitism of young cattle raised in the field, in the Central-West region of Brazil. The experiment was conducted on a farm located in the municipality of Jangada, MT, where 18 cattle, Nelore and Aberdeen Angus breeds, aged six to ten months, were randomly divided into two groups (treated group and control group) and distributed in paddocks of Brachiaria decumbens, naturally infested by larvae of gastrointestinal nematodes. The animals in the treated group received 1g of Bioverm® for each 10 kg of body weight, administered daily with commercial feed, throughout a period of six months. In the control group, each animal received 1 g of rice bran for each 10 kg of body weight, without Bioverm®, added to the feed. Stool and pasture samples were collected every two weeks. The treated group showed a significant reduction (p < 0.05) in values of eggs per gram of feces (EPG) and a significant gain of body weight (p < 0.05) when compared to the control group. The fungal formulation Bioverm® was effective in pasture decontamination and consequently in reducing the occurrence of reinfection by nematodes. The animals treated with Bioverm® showed a lower parasitic load and greater weight gain.

Efficacy of a Fungal Formulation with the Nematophagous Fungus Pochonia chlamydosporia in the Biological Control of Bovine Nematodiosis

“…The statistically significant difference in the penultimate weighing of this study, in which greater weight gain was observed in the treated group compared to the control group, may indicate some action of the fungus. Oliveira et al [18] also recorded an increase in weight gain in animals that received the fungus for six months compared to the control group, however, in the case of a larvicidal and non-ovicidal fungus.…”

Biocontrol of Avian Gastrointestinal Parasites Using Predatory Fungi: Current Status, Challenges, and Opportunities

“…Both larvicidal and ovicidal fungi have been used in several in vitro and in vivo experiments, being unanimously considered an accurate and sustainable tool for the control of GI parasites, resulting in a reduction in the number of eggs per gram of feces (EPG) of 60-97% in field trials with grazing animals [28,[31][32][33][34][35]. The lack of adverse effects of D. flagrans on soil nematodes [36], as well as the innocuousness of M. circinelloides and D. flagrans on several animal species [35,37] should also be underlined.…”

Recent Advances in the Control of Helminths of Domestic Animals by Helminthophagous Fungi

“…In the last five years, commercial formulations containing D. flagrans started became commercially available. In Brazil (Bioverm ® -AC001, GhenVet Saúde Animal, Paulínia, Brazil), Australia, and New Zealand (BioWorma ® -NCIMB 30336, BioWorma, Sydney, Australia), these products are already used, with administration in animal feed [8,[11][12][13][14].…”

“…It has been proven that after oral administration of D. flagrans (AC001-Bioverm ® , GhenVet Saúde Animal, Paulínia, Brazil), at a dosage of 1 g/10 kg of body weight (10 5 chlamydospores/g), there was fungal survival after passage through the gastrointestinal tract of sheep and cattle, with efficient larval predation in vitro [8,14]. Under field conditions, the daily administration of Bioverm ® for six months demonstrated a significant parasitic reduction in cattle and horses in Brazil [12,13]. The use of biological control by helminthophagous fungi provides an option to reduce the rates of contamination by larvae and, consequently, less reinfection for the animals, enabling them to develop natural immunity against the helminths.…”