• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.239-245
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• 2011

This study was conducted to determine the effects of excess vitamin A on alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity, contents of calcium-binding protein (CaBP), bone gla-protein (BGP) in culture medium and CaBP mRNA expression in chicken osteoblasts in vitro. Osteoblastic cells in the tibia from 1-day-old Arbor Acre broiler chickens were isolated using enzyme digestion. The subconfluenced cells were divided into eight treatments with six replicates in each treatment and cultured in a medium containing either vehicle or different levels of vitamin A (0, 0.2, 0.6, 1.0, 2.0, 5.0, 10.0 and $20.0\;{\mu}g$/ml), and the control received an equivalent volume of ethanol. The incubation lasted 48 h. The results showed that vitamin A down-regulated ALP activity in the culture medium as well as CaBP mRNA expression of osteoblasts in a linear dose-dependent manner (p = 0.124 and p<0.10, respectively), and suppressed the contents of BGP and CaBP in the culture medium in a quadratic dose-dependent manner (p<0.05 and p<0.10, respectively) with increasing addition of vitamin A. The addition of 0-$0.2\;{\mu}g$/ml vitamin A to the culture medium increased ALP activity, BGP and CaBP contents as well as CaBP mRNA expression compared with other groups, but positive effects of vitamin A tended to be suppressed when vitamin A was increased to $1.0\;{\mu}g$/ml, and adverse effects occurred when vitamin A was increased to 10.0-$20.0\;{\mu}g$/ml. These results implied that there was a threshold level of vitamin A inclusion beyond which inhibitory effects occurred, and the mechanism by which overdose of vitamin A reduced bone growth in chickens was probably reduced osteoblastic cell activity, and inhibited expression of CaBP mRNA and CaBP secretion.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.36 no.6
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• pp.745-752
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• 2007

This study examined the effects of different levels of evening primrose oil (EPO) on the accumulation of ${\gamma}$-fatty acids in broiler meat. Six hundred one-day-old male chicks (Ross strain) from commercial broilers were divided randomly into 6 groups${\times}$4 repeat pens. The broilers were fed experimental diets containing 4.0% tallow (control), 0.5% EPO, 0.7% mixed oil (EPO 70:soy bean oil 30), 1.5% EPO, 3.0% EPO or 4.0% EPO for two weeks of broiler finisher. There was a significant difference in body weight gain between the control and treatment groups except for the 0.5% EPO group (p<0.05). There was a significant difference in the percentage of thigh and breast weight against the carcass weight between control and treatment groups except for the 0.5% EPO group in the thigh and 0.5% EPO and 4.0% EPO groups in the breast weight (p<0.05). The saturated fatty acid levels of the skin and breast muscle lipid of the broilers fed diets containing EPO were significantly lower than that of the control group (p<0.05), while the level of unsaturated fatty acid was significantly higher than that of the control group (p<0.05). The ${\gamma}$-fatty acid (GLA, gamma.linolenic acid, 18:3n-6) level was particularly higher in the chicken meat lipids from the broilers fed EPO than in the control group (p<0.05). This shows that feeding EPO to chicks can produce novel functional broiler meat that is enriched in gamma-linolenic acid.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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• v.41 no.3
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• pp.197-204
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• 2014

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of different levels of red ginseng mare or Korean mistletoe powder on growth performance and physicochemical properties of thigh meat in broiler. A total of 200 broiler chicks were divided into five groups were fed a basal diet (control), basal diet supplemented with 0.5% red ginseng mare (T1), red ginseng mare 1% added (T2), Korean mistletoe 0.5% added (T3), Korean mistletoe 0.5% added (T4) for five weeks. Growth performance and proximate composition of chicken thigh meat were not influenced by all treatments, except for mortality and crude fat, which was significantly lower in all treatments with red ginseng mare or Korean mistletoe powder compared to control. Dietary red ginseng mare and Korean mistletoe supplementation had no significantly effects on pH, WHC, shear force, CIE $L^*$, $b^*$ values, triglyceride and glucose but TBARS values total cholesterol, and LDL-cholesterol were decreased (P<0.05) by the addition red ginseng mare and Korean mistletoe powder. CIE $a^*$ values increased significantly with added red ginseng mare and Korean mistletoe powder relative to the control (P<0.05). It was concluded that the addition of red ginseng mare and Korean mistletoe powder revealed minor improvements in the lipid oxidative stability of chicken meat.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
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• v.63 no.4
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• pp.815-826
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• 2021

The objective of the current study was to investigate the effects of stocking density (SD) and dietary supplementation of vitamin C on growth performance, meat quality, intestinal permeability, and stress indicators in broiler chickens. The study was conducted using a completely randomized design with a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement consisting of 2 different SD and 2 supplemental levels of dietary vitamin C. A total of 1,368 Ross 308 broiler chickens of 21 days of age with similar body weights (BW) were randomly allotted to 1 of 4 treatments with 6 replicates each. Different numbers of birds per identical floor pen (2.0 m × 2.4 m) were used to create 2 different SD levels of low SD (9 birds/m²) and high SD (18 birds/m²). The basal diet was formulated with no supplemental vitamin C to meet or exceed nutrient recommendations of the Ross 308 manual. The other diet was prepared by supplementing 200 mg/kg vitamin C in the basal diet. The study lasted for 14 days. At the end of the study, 3 male birds per replicate were selected to analyze meat quality, intestinal permeability, and stress indicators such as blood heterophil:lymphocyte (H:L) and feather corticosterone (CORT) concentrations. Results indicated that there were no interactions between different SD and dietary supplementation of vitamin C for all measurements. For the main effects of SD, birds raised at high SD had less (p < 0.01) BW, BW gain, and feed intake with increasing stress responses including greater blood H:L and feather CORT concentrations (p < 0.01) than those raised at low SD. Transepithelial electrical resistance in the jejunal mucosa was decreased (p < 0.05) at high SD, indicating an increase in intestinal permeability. However, the main effects of dietary supplementation of 200 mg/kg vitamin C were insignificant for all measurements. In conclusion, high SD of broiler chickens impairs growth performance and intestinal barrier function with increasing stress responses. However, dietary supplementation of vitamin C may have little beneficial effects on broiler chickens raised at the high SD condition used in the present study.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.18 no.8
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• pp.1153-1156
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• 2005

An experiment was conducted with three hundred and twenty broiler chickens to evaluate the influence of supplementation of probiotic on growth, microbiological status and carcass quality of chickens. The probiotic contained similar proportions of six strains of variable organisms namely Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus casei, Bifidobacterium bifidum, Aspergillus oryzae, Streptococcus faecium and Torulopsis sps and was fed at 100 mg/kg diet. The body weight and feed conversion of probiotic fed groups were superior (p<0.05) compared to the control group in the 4th, 5th and 6th weeks. The chickens fed the diet with probiotic had lower (p<0.05) numbers of coliforms and Campylobacter than chickens fed the control diet. All chickens' carcasses on the control diet were positive for Salmonella while only 16 of the 40 carcasses were positive from chickens fed diets containing probiotic. The leg and breast meat of probiotic fed chickens were higher (p<0.05) in moisture, protein and ash, and lower in fat as compared to the leg and breast meat of control chickens.

• Food Science and Biotechnology
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.431-436
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• 2006

Effects of vacuum packaging and modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) on shelf life of selenium-supplemented chicken meat during refrigerated storage were examined. Body weight and feed efficiency were unaffected by dietary selenium level. Dietary treatments and packaging methods had no significant effects on level of microbial growth, lightness, and metmyoglobin content. MAP decreased purge loss (10.9-34.5%) and lipid oxidation (15.2-15.9%) more efficiently than vacuum packaging. Broiler chicks supplemented with ${\alpha}$-tocopherol or ${\alpha}$-tocopherol + selenium had similar TBA values. Dietary supplementation of 4 and 8 ppm selenium reduced lipid oxidation, and this effect was less significant in MAP breast meat.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.211-220
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• 2017

Objective: The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of yeast with bacteriocin and Lactobacillus cultures (mixture of Lactobacillus agilis BCRC 10436 and Lactobacillus reuteri BCRC 17476) supplements, alone or in combination, on broiler chicken performance. Methods: A total of 300, 1-d-old healthy broiler chickens were randomly divided into five treatment groups: i) basal diet (control), ii) basal diet+0.25% yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) (YC), iii) basal diet+0.25% yeast with bacteriocin (BA), iv) basal diet+Lactobacillus cultures (LAB), and v) basal diet +0.25% yeast with bacteriocin+Lactobacillus cultures (BA+LAB). Growth performance, cecal microbiota, cecal fermentation products, and blood biochemistry parameters were determined when chickens were 21 and 35 d old. Results: The supplementation of YC, BA, and BA+LAB resulted in a significantly better feed conversion rate (FCR) than that of the control group during 1 to 21 d (p<0.05). The LAB supplementation had a significant effect on the presence of Lactobacillus in the ceca at 35 d. None of the supplements had an effect on relative numbers of L. agilis and L. reuter at 21 d, but the BA supplementation resulted in the decrease of both Lactobacillus strains at 35 d. The BA+LAB supplementation resulted in higher short chain fatty acid (SCFA) in the ceca, but LAB supplementation significantly decreased the SCFA at 35 d (p<0.05). All treatments tended to decrease ammonia concentration in the ceca at 21 d, especially in the LAB treatment group. The BA supplementation alone decreased the triacylglycerol (TG) concentration significantly at 21 d (p<0.05), but the synergistic effect of BA and LAB supplementation was required to reduce the TG concentration at 35 d. The YC supplementation tended to increase the plasma cholesterol at 21 d and 35 d. However, the BA supplementation significantly decreased the cholesterol and low density lipoprotein cholesterol level at 35 d. In conclusion, the BA+LAB supplementation was beneficial to body weight gain and FCR of broiler chickens. Conclusion: The effect of BA and LAB supplementation may be a result of the growth of lactic acid bacteria enhancement and physiological characterization of bacteriocin, and it suggests that the BA and LAB supplementation level or Lactobacillus strain selection should be integrated in future supplementation designs.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.25 no.5
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• pp.682-689
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• 2012

A feeding trial was conducted to investigate effects of Bacillus licheniformis on growth performance and meat quality of broilers. Nine hundred one-d-old broiler chicks were randomly assigned to 3 experimental groups with three replicate pens of 100 broiler chicks. Three treatments were i) control, ii) basal diets supplemented with 1 ml of B. licheniformis for each in feed water per day iii) basal diets supplemented with 2 ml of B. licheniformis per chick in feed water per day. The supplementation of B. licheniformis significantly increased body weight in grower chickens (p<0.05), and significantly improved the feed conversion in 3 to 6 and 0 to 6 wk feeding period compared with the control group (p<0.05). Additionally, the supplement also resulted in increased protein and free amino acid contents, and decreased fat content in chicken breast fillet (p<0.05). Furthermore, improvement in sensory attributes was observed in broilers fed with the probiotic. In conclusion, B. licheniformis treatments resulted in a significant increase (p<0.05) in broiler productivity based on an index taking into account daily weight gain and feed conversion rate. Meanwhile, the probiotic contributed towards an improvement of the chemical, nutritional and sensorial characteristics of breast fillet. Overall, the study indicates that B. licheniformis can be used as a growth promoter and meat quality enhancer in broiler poultry.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.1-8
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• 2007

A total of twenty, 2-wk-old male broiler chickens were allotted into control diet(CON) or a diet supplemented with 1% ground grape seed(GGS). They had free access to feed and water for 3 wk. Growth performance and antioxidant markers in plasma, intestine and liver were determined. Dietary addition of 1% GGS did not affect weight gain, feed intake, feed conversion and organ weight in 35 day-old broiler chickens significantly. There was no difference in plasma levels of glucose, triglyceride, cholesterol, AST, ALT and LDH activity. However, total antioxidant status(TAS) in blood increased(P<0.05) in chickens fed the diet supplemented with 1% GGS compared to those fed the control diet. In addition, the specific activity of intestinal superoxide dismutase(SOD) increased(P<0.05) in birds fed the diet supplemented with GGS. However, the activities of intestinal gluthathione peroxidase(GSHPx) and gluthathione -S- transferase(GST) and hepatic SOD, GSHPx and GST were not affected by the dietary GGS. The levels of reduced glutathione and lipid peroxidation in the small intestine and liver were not different between the two groups. In conclusion, dietary supplementation of 1% GGS did not result in a negative effect on growth performance. In addition, some antioxidant indicators including blood TAS and intestinal SOD were markedly elevated in response to dietary GGS. Therefore, dietary addition of 1% GGS may be beneficial to improve antioxidant capacity in broiler chicken.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.49-54
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• 2005

An experiment was conducted to investigate whether dietary yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae, SC) and its' structural components, i.e., yeast cell-extract (YE) and yeast cell-wall (CW) could influence growth performance, ileal morphology and serum lipids of male broiler chickens. There were four dietary treatments, each consisting of 6 replicates (10 birds per replicate). Chickens were fed a corn-soybean meal base control diet and diets containing SC ($0.5\%$), YE ($0.25\%$) and CW ($0.25\%$), respectively for 5-wk-experimental period. Dietary SC, YE and CW versus the control diet did not affect growth performance of male broiler chickens. Ileal morphology as to villus height, crypt depth and villus:crypt ratio of birds fed on the control diet was not significant from those fed on diets rich in SC, YE and CW, respectively. Dietary SC significantly lowered (P<0.05) serum total cholesterol by on average $19.7\%$ as compared to the control group. In addition, chickens fed on diets with either YE or CW lowered serum cholesterol by on average 15.3 and $12.5\%$, respectively as compared to the control albeit that the former only reached statistical significance. In conclusion, our study observed the hypocholesterolemic effect of SC in male broiler chickens. Moreover, YE, i.e., an extract of intracellular components of SC contains active molecules that are responsible far lowering serum cholesterol concentrations, but their identification at the molecular level needs to be assessed.