• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
• /
• 제17권6호
• /
• pp.836-842
• /
• 2004

An experiment was conducted to study the performance of broilers chicks (2 to 42 d of age) fed diets containing pearl millet (PM, Pennisetum typhoides), foxtail millet (FOM, Setaria italica) or finger millet (FIM, Elusine coracana) totally replacing (w/w) yellow maize (YM) with and with out supplementing non-starch polysaccharide (NSP) hydrolysing enzymes at the rate of 0.5 g/kg diet. Enzyme preparation contained amylase 2,400 units, hemi-cellulase 5,400 units, cellulase 12,000 units, protease 2,400 units and beta-glucanase 106 units/g. Each diet was fed to eight replicates (five female Vencob broilers/replicate) housed in stainless steel battery brooders. The estimated metabolizable energy (ME) contents of YM, PM, FOM and FIM were FM (PM) were about 3,389, 2,736, 3,303 and 2,846 kcal/kg, respectively. Total replacement of YM with FOM did not influence the body weight gain, ready to cook yield, relative weights of giblet, liver, intestine, lymphoid organs (bursa and spleen) and length of intestine, antibody titers and livability at 42 d of age. But the food efficiency decreased significantly in FOM fed broilers compared those fed YM. Further, the fat content in thigh muscle reduced with FOM fed groups compared to those fed YM. The performance of broilers decreased significantly in PM and FIM fed broilers compared to those fed YM. The relative weights of giblet, gizzard and liver increased in FIM fed groups compared to those fed YM as the principal source of energy in broilers. Incorporation of NSP hydrolysing enzymes in commercial broiler diets improved the efficiency of feed utilization during starter phase but not at 42 d of age. The results thus indicate that yellow maize can be replaced in toto on weight basis in commercial broiler diets without affecting the performance. Supplementation of NSP hydrolysing enzymes was beneficial in enhancing feed utilization during the starter phase.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
• /
• 제26권3호
• /
• pp.408-415
• /
• 2013

The objective of this experiment was to assess the use of different vitamin D metabolites in the feed of broiler chickens and the effects of the metabolites on performance, bone parameters and meat quality. A total of 952 one-day-old male broiler chicks were distributed in a completely randomised design, with four treatments, seven replicates and 34 birds per experimental unit. The treatments consisted of four different sources of vitamin D included in the diet, $D_3$, $25(OH)D_3$, $1,25(OH)_2D_3$, and $1{\alpha}(OH)D_3$, providing 2000 and 1600 IU of vitamin D in the starter (1 to 21 d) and growth phases (22 to 42 d), respectively. Mean weight, feed:gain and weight gain throughout the rearing period were less in animals fed $1{\alpha}(OH)D_3$ when compared with the other treatments (p<0.05). No significant differences were noted among the treatments (p>0.05) for various bone parameters. Meat colour differed among the treatments (p>0.05). All of the metabolites used in the diets, with the exception of $1{\alpha}(OH)D_3$, can be used for broiler chickens without problems for performance and bone quality, however, some aspects of meat quality were affected.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
• /
• 제18권7호
• /
• pp.1017-1021
• /
• 2005

Myostatin is a negative regulator of skeletal muscle growth and a loss of functional myostatin protein increases muscle hypertrophy and hyperplasia in cattle. The present study was conducted to investigate whether maternal passive immunization against myostatin would improve growth performance in chickens. A complete broiler myostatin cDNA was cloned and it was expressed into two transcripts as 1,128 bp and 985 bp by alternative splicing. A conjugated mature myostatin (350 bp) was used to induce autoimmunization and maternal passively immunized chickens was used for the experiment. It was confirmed that there was a maternal passive immunization against myostatin at zero weeks of age, but its effect was reduced by 6 weeks of age. The auto-immunized groups showed smaller body weights than those of control group during the growing period and the difference was getting bigger with time until 6 weeks of age. These results suggest that passive autoimmunization against myostatin used in this study is not potent enough to stimulate growth performance in chickens.

• 농업과학연구
• /
• 제47권2호
• /
• pp.255-262
• /
• 2020

The aim of this study was to investigate the growth performance between two different crossbred strains of Korean native chickens denoted as 1E and 2E with a white semibroiler (LL) from hatch to d-84 post-hatch. A total of 450 one-day-old chicks were randomly distributed into cages which included 15 replicate cages each for 1E and 2E with 9 replicate cages for LL. A three phase feeding program was used as a starter (Day 1 - 35; crude protein [CP] 20.3%; metabolizable energy [ME] 3,059 kcal·kg^-1), grower (Day 36 - 56; CP 18.6%; ME 3,123 kcal·kg^-1) and finisher (Day 57 - 84; CP 16.7%; ME 3,187 kcal·kg^-1). The results revealed that LL had a higher (p < 0.05) BW during d-8 to d-84 compared with the other two cross breed groups. A higher (p < 0.05) ADG was observed from the LL during the entire period except from d-1 to d-14 and d-71 to d-84 when compared with 1E and 2E. Shank length did not vary (p > 0.05) between the strains, despite LL having a SL that was 2.86% higher (p < 0.05) when compared with the other strains from d-15 to d-21 post-hatch, and 1E had a SL that was 2.28% (p < 0.05) higher when compared with the other strains during the first week of the experiment.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
• /
• 제64권6호
• /
• pp.1092-1104
• /
• 2022

Using antibiotics as growth promoter has been banned in poultry feed industry, thus various researchers try to seek an alternative to replace the growth-promoting antibiotics. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the growth performance via intestinal nutrient utilization and cecal microbial composition of broiler after dietary supplementation with most commonly using antibiotics, zinc bacitracin, and sophorolipid. A total of 180 1-day-old chicks were randomly assigned, and dietary treatment was as follow: CON, basal diet; ZB, 100 ppm of zinc bacitracin supplemented diet; and SPL, 250 ppm of sophorolipid supplemented diet. Their growth performance was evaluated and the samples of blood, small intestine, and ileal and cecal digesta were collected for biochemical, histological, and genomic analyses. The body weight and average daily gain of 7-day-old chicks were higher in ZB and those in overall experimental period were improved by ZB and SPL supplementation (p < 0.05). Their intestinal characteristics were not affected by dietary treatments in duodenum and ileum. Nonetheless, villus height was increased by SPL supplementation in jejunum (p < 0.05). Moreover, dietary SPL supplementation could down-regulate the expression level of pro-inflammatory cytokine, IL-1β (p < 0.05). mRNA levels of lipid and protein transporters did not differ among the treatments, however, relative expression levels of carbohydrate transporters, GLUT2 and SGLT1 were increased in broiler chicken's jejumum fed zinc bacitracin and sophorolipid supplemented diets (p < 0.05). Dietary zinc bacitracin supplementation could increase the population of Firmicutes in phylum level, and the portion of Turiciacter in genus level. On the other hands, the portion of Faecalibacterium was increased by dietary SPL supplementation compared to the other treatments. Our findings suggest that SPL supplementation improves growth performance through enhanced carbohydrate utilization capacity via improvement of gut morphological status and modulation of the cecal microbial population of broilers.

• Animal Bioscience
• /
• 제36권8호
• /
• pp.1252-1262
• /
• 2023

Objective: Microencapsulation technologies have been developed and successfully applied to protect the probiotic bacterial cells damaged by environmental exposure. This study aimed to investigate the effects of microencapsulation of Lactobacillus plantarum MB001 on the growth performance, ileal nutrient digestibility, jejunal histomorphology and cecal microbiome of broiler chickens in a tropical climate. Methods: A total of 288 one-day-old female broilers (Ross 308) were randomly allocated into 4 groups (6 replicates of 12 birds). Treatments included, i) a basal diet (NC), ii) NC + avilamycin (10 mg/kg) (PC), iii) NC + non-encapsulated L. plantarum MB001 (1×10⁸ colony-forming unit [CFU]/kg of diet) (N-LP), iv) NC + microencapsulated L. plantarum MB001 (1×10⁸ CFU/kg of diet) (ME-LP). Results: Dietary supplementation of ME-LP improved average daily gain, and feed conversion ratio of broilers throughout the 42-d trial period (p<0.05), whereas ME-LP did not affect average daily feed intake compared with NC group. Both N-LP and ME-LP improved apparent ileal digestibility of crude protein and ether extract compared with NC group (p<0.05). The broilers fed ME-LP supplemented diet exhibited a beneficial effect on jejunal histomorphology of villus height (VH), crypt depth (CD) and villus height to crypt depth ratio (VH:CD) of broilers compared to NC group (p<0.05). At the phylum level, Firmicutes was enriched (p<0.05) and Proteobacteria was decreased (p<0.05) only in the ME-LP group. At the genus level, the ME-LP diets increased (p<0.05) the number of both Lactobacillus and Enterococcus compared to NC, PC, and N-LP groups (p<0.05). Conclusion: Microencapsulation assists the efficient functioning of probiotics. ME-LP could be potentially used as a feed additive for improvement of cecal microbiota, gut integrity and nutrient utilization, leading to better performance of broilers.

• Animal Bioscience
• /
• 제36권11호
• /
• pp.1718-1726
• /
• 2023

Objective: The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of supplementation with enzymolytic soybean meal (ESBM) on broilers fed low crude protein (CP) diets. Methods: A total of 360 one-day-old broilers were randomly assigned to six treatments with 6 replicates per treatment and 10 chicks per replicate for a period of 42 days. Chicks were fed a basal standard high-CP diet as a positive control (PC), a low-CP diet (reducing 10 g/kg CP from the PC) as a negative control (NC), or an NC + 0.5%, 1.0%, 1.5%, or 2.0% ESBM diet. Results: Compared to chicks fed the PC, chicks fed the NC had a decreased body weight gain (BWG, p<0.05) from 1 to 42 days, but supplementation with 2.0% ESBM restored BWG (p<0.05) and even linearly improved the feed conversion rate (FCR, p<0.05). Digestibility of CP and ether extract was increased (p<0.05) in chicks fed a 1.0% ESBM diet compared to the PC. With increasing levels of ESBM, nitrogen (N) excretion decreased (p<0.05). The addition of ESBM to the diet did not affect (p>0.05) serum concentrations of total protein, albumin and total cholesterol but led to a descending trend in triglycerides and an ascending trend in calcium and urea N at 42 days (p<0.10). There were no differences (p>0.05) in villus height (VH), crypt depth (CD), and VH/CD (V/C) of the duodenum and jejunum between the PC and NC at both 21 days and 42 days, while increasing dietary ESBM levels linearly (p<0.05) decreased CD and increased V/C of the duodenum and jejunum at both 21 days and 42 days. Conclusion: The findings indicated that ESBM could be used in broiler low-CP diets to improve production performance, decrease N excretion, and enhance intestinal health.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
• /
• 제65권4호
• /
• pp.804-817
• /
• 2023

This study was conducted to evaluate the effects of co-dried fish protein hydrolysate (CFPH) on broilers performance, intestinal microbiology, and cellular immune responses. Five hundred one-day-old (Ross 308) male broilers were allocated to four treatments with five replicates of 25 birds in a completely randomized design. The experimental treatments included four levels of CFPH (0% as the control, 2.5%, 5%, and 7.5%) in the isonitrogenous and isocaloric diets. During the experiment, body weight (BW) and feed intake (FI) were periodically recorded in addition to calculating average daily gain (ADG), feed conversion ratio (FCR), liveability index, and European broiler index (EBI). In addition, cellular immune responses were evaluated at 30 days of age. On day 42, ileal contents were obtained to examine the microbial population. Based on the findings, Dietary supplementation of 5 and 7.5% CFPH increased the percentage of the thigh while decreasing the relative weight of the gizzard compared to the control group. The highest relative length of jejunum was observed in birds receiving 2.5 and 5% CFPH, and its highest relative weight belonged to birds fed with 5% CFPH. The number of coliforms, enterobacters, and total gram-negative bacteria in the intestines of birds receiving CFPH was less than that of the control group. In general, the application of CFPH in broiler nutrition can decrease the level of soybean meal in diet and it can be considered as a new protein supplement in poultry production. It is suggested to study the incorporation of this new supplement in other livestock's diets.

• Animal Bioscience
• /
• 제36권11호
• /
• pp.1632-1646
• /
• 2023

Objective: The objective of the present study was to investigate the effect of dietary betaine (BT) supplementation on the hepatic transcriptome profiles in broiler chickens raised under heat stress (HS) conditions. Methods: A total of 180 (21-d-old) Ross 308 male broiler chicks were allotted to 1 of 3 treatment groups with 6 replicated cages in a completely randomized design. One group was kept under thermoneutral conditions at all times and was fed a basal diet (PC). Other 2 groups were exposed to a cyclic heat stress condition. One of the 2 groups under heat stress conditions was fed the basal diet as a negative control (NC), whereas the other group was fed the basal diet supplemented with 0.2% BT. All chickens were provided with diets and water ad libitum for 21 d. Following the experiment, the liver samples were collected for RNA sequencing analysis. Results: Broiler chickens in NC and BT group had decreased (p<0.05) growth performance. In the transcriptome analysis, the number of differentially expressed genes were identified in the liver by HS conditions and dietary BT supplementation. In the comparison between NC and PC treatments, genes related to energy and nucleic acid metabolism, amino acid metabolism, and immune system were altered by HS, which support the reason why heat-stressed poultry had decreased growth performance. In the comparison between NC and BT treatments, genes related to lipid metabolism, carbohydrate metabolism, and immune system were differently expressed under HS conditions. Conclusion: HS negatively impacts various physiological processes, including DNA replication, metabolism of amino acids, lipids, and carbohydrates, and cell cycle progression in broiler chickens. Dietary BT supplementation, however, offers potential counteractive effects by modulating liver function, facilitating gluconeogenesis, and enhancing immune systems. These findings provide a basis for understanding molecular responses by HS and the possible benefits of dietary BT supplementation in broiler chickens exposed to HS.

• 한국가금학회지
• /
• 제50권4호
• /
• pp.203-212
• /
• 2023

본 연구는 산란능력이 우수한 토종 실용산란계를 개발하기 위하여 토종 종계 4계통(YC, YD, CK, CF)을 이용하여 이면 교배조합 검정시험(diallel crossbreeding test)을 실시하였다. 능력검정은 6개 조합의 312수를 대상으로 발생 후부터 60주령까지 생존율, 체중, 초산일령, 난중, 산란율 및 난질을 조사하고, 이들의 생산능력 및 결합능력을 분석하였다. 분석 결과, 전체 조합의 평균 생존율은 77.1±18.8%이고, 조합 중 YDYC조합의 생존율이 가장 높았고, YCCF조합의생존율이 가장 낮았다. YDYC조합의 경우, YD와 YC계통 간의 특정결합능력이 특히 우수하였다. 체중은 모든 측정 주령에서 조합 간의 유의한 차이가 있었는데, 전 기간 YDYC 조합의 자손이 다른 조합의 자손들보다 무거운 것으로 나타났다(P<0.01). 평균 초산일령은 121.3±2.5일로 조합 간의 차이는 없는 것으로 나타났다. 20주령부터 60주령까지 전체조합의 평균 일계산란율은 74.0±6.4%이었고, 산란지수는181.4±33.8개로 일계산란율은 조합 간에 유의한 차이를 보였다(P<0.05). 조합 중 YDCF 및 YCCK조합의 산란 성적이 가장 높았고, YDYC 및 CKCF조합이 가장 낮았으며, 이들의 성적은 일반결합능력보다 특정결합능력에 의해 더욱 큰 영향을 받는 것으로 나타났다. 난중은 측정 시점 모두에서 조합 간 유의한 차이를 보였고(P<0.05), YDYC조합의난중이 전체적으로 낮게 나타났다. 난각색, 난각 두께, 난각 무게 모두 조합 간에 유의한 차이를 보이며(P<0.01), 난각색은 YDYC조합의 달걀이 가장 짙었고, 난각 두께는 YDCF조합이 가장 두꺼웠다. 내부 난질은 조합 간 차이가 없었으며, 난황색은 YDCF조합이 가장 짙은 것으로 나타났다. 결론적으로 산란 능력을 바탕으로 최적의 토종 실용산란계를 선정시 산란율이 우수하면서 생존율이 높은 YCCK조합과 산란율이 우수하면서 상대적으로 난질이 양호한 YDCF조합이 가장 바람직한 조합으로 사료된다.