Spotty liver disease

Spotty Liver Disease has become common in the Australian layer industry. Campylobacter hepaticus, the bacterial pathogen that causes the disease, has recently been identified and characterised. Following on from the initial discovery of the causative pathogen, whole genome sequencing of a collection of isolates has been carried out and molecular assays have been developed. The molecular assays allow culture free detection and quantification of C. hepaticus in microbially complex samples such as gastrointestinal tract samples. In addition, a multiplex PCR assay has been developed to that is capable of simultaneous detection of C. hepaticus, C. jejuni, and C. coli.