Effect of diet supplemented with graded levels of garlic (Allium sativum L.) powder on growth performance, carcass characteristics, blood hematology, and biochemistry of broilers

Background: Recently, attention has been paid to using plants with medicinal efficacy as alternates to antibiotics and growth promoters. Garlic is a traditional plant used as a spice and herb in broilers. Aim: To investigate the effect of garlic powder on broiler performance, carcass characteristics, blood hematology, and biochemistry. Method: A total of 240 1-day-old broiler chicks (Cobb500) were purchased from a local hatchery and randomly distributed into four dietary treatments. Each treatment comprised 5 replicates with 12 chicks each. Garlic powder (Allium sativum) was supplemented as follows: 0.0%, 0.1%, 0.2%, and 0.3%. The diets were formulated to be approximately isocaloric and cover all nutrient requirements for broilers throughout two stages of growth periods: starter diets (1–21 days) and finisher diets (22–42 days). At the end of the experiment, one bird was chosen from each replicate to measure the carcass characteristics and blood was collected. Results: The findings showed that birds fed a diet supplemented by 0.3% garlic powder was significantly (p < 0.05) better in terms of body weight, body weight gain, and feed conversion ratio compared to those birds fed 0%, 0.1%, or 0.2% garlic powder. In addition, feeding 0.1% or 0.2% garlic powder significantly increased (p < 0.05) packed cell volume, total white blood cells, neutrophil, eosinophil, monocyte, and lymphocyte compared to the control group. Furthermore, garlic supplementation led to a decrease in alanine aminotransferase, total cholesterol, triglycerides, and low density lipoprotein compared to the control. At the same time, high density lipoprotein was significantly increased (p < 0.05) by garlic supplementation. Conclusion: It can be concluded that the supplementation of 0.3% garlic powder as a growth promoter leads to reducing the cost of production through improving growth performance and enhancing birds’ health

Prevalence of coccidia in domestic pigeons (Columba livia domestica Gmelin, 1789) in Benghazi city, Libya

Pigeon coccidiosis is caused by Eimeria spp; a protozoan parasite which limits birds’ productivity by causing severe illness. The current study was carried out to investigate the prevalence of coccidiosis on domestic pigeon in Libya. Intestinal contents of 100 pigeons (Columba livia domestica Gmelin, 1789) were collected within a period of five months; January to May 2020. The intestinal content was examined to detect of coccidian oocysts infection on the randomly selected birds. A total of 100 faecal samples were investigated with two methods;Willis-Schaafs (qualitative) and McMaster’s (quantitative). The results obtained showed that the number of infected Pigeons was 72 pigeons (72%) of the total number of Pigeons. The prevalence was higher in female than that of males, where the total of infected females was 50 (69.4 %) and infected males was 22 (30.6%). The results showed that the highest incidence of Eimeria labbeana was observed in the young pigeons than that of adults, where the total number of young pigeons was 66 (91.7 %), and adult pigeon was 6 (8.3 %)

Characterization of cellulolytic bacterial cultures grown in different substrates

Nine aerobic cellulolytic bacterial cultures were obtained from the Leibniz Institute DSMZ-German Collection of Microorganisms and Cell Culture (DSMZ) and the American Type Culture Collection (ATCC). The objectives of this study were to characterize the cellulolytic bacteria and to determine the optimum moisture ratio required for solid state fermentation (SSF) of palm kernel cake (PKC). The bacteria cultures were grown on reconstituted nutrient broth, incubated at 30∘C and agitated at 200 rpm. Carboxymethyl cellulase, xylanase, and mannanase activities were determined using different substrates and after SSF of PKC. The SSF was conducted for 4 and 7 days with inoculum size of 10% (v/w) on different PKC concentration-to-moisture ratios: 1 : 0.2, 1 : 0.3, 1 : 0.4, and 1 : 0.5. Results showed that Bacillus amyloliquefaciens 1067 DSMZ, Bacillus megaterium 9885 ATCC, Paenibacillus curdlanolyticus 10248 DSMZ, and Paenibacillus polymyxa 842 ATCC produced higher enzyme activities as compared to other bacterial cultures grown on different substrates. The cultures mentioned above also produced higher enzyme activities when they were incubated under SSF using PKC as a substrate in different PKC-to-moisture ratios after 4 days of incubation, indicating that these cellulolytic bacteria can be used to degrade and improve the nutrient quality of PKC

Effect of feeding larvae meal in the diets on growth performance, nutrient digestibility and meat quality in broiler chicken

Larvae meal has been reported as a suitable alternative protein source to fish meal and soybean meal. It contains necessary essential amino acids required in poultry feeding. A feeding trial was conducted to assess the effects of feeding different levels of larvae meal on broiler performance, nutrient digestibility, carcass and meat quality, and bacterial count. Day-old male broiler chicks (216) were raised for 42 days. Birds were weighed and randomly allotted into 6 dietary treatments consisting of 6 replicates (pens) per treatment and 6 birds in each replicate. The dietary treatments were supplemented with earth larvae meal by 0% (control group), 2%, 4%, 6%, 8% and 10%. The feed and drinking water were provided ad lib. The findings showed that body weight, average daily gain and total weight gain for group of birds fed 0% larvae meal significantly decreased compared to those chickens fed 8% and 10% larvae meal. A higher crude protein digestibility was found in birds fed with larvae meal. Control group had the highest Enterobacteriaceae count compared to the other treatments. Larvae meal supplementation improved the growth performance, nutrient digestibility and meat quality of broiler chicken and decreased excreta Enterobacteriaceae counts

Nontraditional Feedstuffs as an Alternative in Poultry Feed

Soybean meal and yellow corn are conventional feedstuffs used as the main ingredients in poultry feeds due to their high nutrients availability. On the other hand, these two feedstuffs are high in demand by other animals (soybean meal) and humans (yellow corn). By the year 2050, the world’s population is expected to increase up to 9.1 billion. Global consumption of poultry products, such as meat or eggs is increasing predominantly in developing countries. Consequently, the global demand for poultry feedstuffs would increase. The availability of feedstuffs for poultry nutrition nowadays is becoming more competitive. Thus, food security, especially in the developing countries, would be threatened. Currently, efforts are being made to use alternative feedstuffs to substitute portion of soybean meal and yellow corn in poultry diets. This chapter discusses the alternative feedstuffs that can be incorporated in poultry feeds. In addition, the nutritive content and availability are examined as well as how to improve the nutritive quality of such nontraditional feedstuffs

Effect of feeding fermented and non-fermented palm kernel cake on the performance of broiler chickens: a review

Palm kernel cake (PKC) is a by-product of oil extraction from palm fruits and has been included in poultry diets as an alternative to soybean meal and yellow corn. Due to its high content of fibre, coarse texture and gritty appearance, the use of PKC in poultry nutrition is limited. In order to increase the nutritive value of PKC, there is a tendency nowadays to create solid state fermentation (SSF) by using cellulolytic microbes. This paper reviews the impact of feeding fermented and non-fermented PKC on the performance of broiler chickens. Recent studies have reported that SSF by cellulolytic microorganisms improved the nutritive value of PKC. The nutrient digestibility has been increased significantly in PKC fermented using Paenibacillus polymyxya ATCC 842 or Weisella confusa SR-17b. The availability of valine, histidine, methionine and arginine was 70.42%, 71.50%, 71.92% and 81.15%, respectively, in PKC fermented using P. polymyxa ATCC 842. The digestibility of crude protein (CP) increased by 61.83% and 59.90% in PKC fermented using P. polymyxya ATCC 842 or W. confusa SR-17b, respectively. In addition, body weight gain (BWG) and feed conversion ratio (FCR) improved significantly in broilers fed 15% fermented PKC compared to those fed 15% non-fermented PKC (2000.43 g versus 1823.23 g and 1.75 versus 1.91, respectively). The intestinal Enterobacteriaceae decreased (4.03 CFU/g) and lactic acid bacteria increased (5.56 CFU/g) in birds fed 15% PKC fermented by P. polymyxa ATCC 842. Therefore, fermented PKC can be included in a broiler diet up to 15%, replacing part of soybean and yellow corn in the diet, leading to a decrease in the overall cost of poultry feeding

Influence of dietary ratios of n-6: n-3 fatty acid on gene expression, fatty acid profile in liver and breast muscle tissues, serum lipid profile, and immunoglobulin in broiler chickens¹

The study was conducted to investigate the influence of varying concentrations of dietary n-6: n-3 fatty acid ratio (FAR) on fatty acid (FA) structure, expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)α, PPARγ, and stearoyl-CoA desaturase (SCD) on liver and breast muscle tissue, lipid profile in serum and immunoglobulin in broiler birds. A total of 180 one-day-old Cobb 500 broiler birds were randomly allotted to 5 dietary treatments as follows: (T1) basal diet containing 6% palm oil (PO) as a control; (T2) basal diet containing 4% PO + 1% soybean oil (SO) + 1% linseed oil (LO); (T3) basal diet containing 3% PO + 2% SO + 1% LO; (T4) basal diet containing 3% PO + 1% SO + 2% LO; (T5) basal diet containing 2% PO + 2% SO + 2% LO. The n-6: n-3 ratio for the T1, T2, T3, T4, and T5 were 17.68, 3.70, 3.67, 2.18, and 2.05, respectively, whereas the ratios were 19.02, 3.28, 3.82, 2.28, and 2.23 for the T1, T2, T3, T4, and T5 in the finisher diets, respectively. The ratios of C22:6n-3, C18:3n-3, and C22:5n-3 in liver and breast muscle tissue amplified in response to a decrease in the proportion of n-6: n-3 FAR in diets. In addition, reducing the n-6: n-3 FAR in broiler diets up regulated the expression of PPARγ and PPARα but down regulates the expression of SCD (P < 0.05) in the breast and liver tissues. Moreover, reducing the dietary n-6: n-3 FAR improved plasma immunoglobulin and decreased the amount of cholesterol in breast meat and serum. The results suggest that decreasing the n-6: n-3 FAR in broiler diets may improve the immune response and enriched broiler meat with lower ratio of n-6: n-3 fatty acids and potential health beneficial n-3 FA for human diet

Effect of solid state fermentation on nutrient content and ileal amino acids digestibility of palm kernel cake in broiler chickens

Digestibility trial was conducted to determine the apparent ileal digestibility (AID) of crude protein (CP) andamino acids (AA) in untreated palm kernel cake (PKC) and fermented palm kernel cake (FPKC) on finisher broiler. Paenibacillus polymyxa ATCC 842 and P. curdlanolyticus DSMZ 10248 were used to produce FPKCa and FPKCb, respectively through solid state fermentation (SSF). Broiler male chickens were fed with diets containing 15%PKC from day one until 41 days of age. Birds (36) were selected with uniform body weight, and randomly distributed into 3 groups with 6 replicates in each treatment and 2 birds per replicate. The chickens were deprived from food overnight with free access to drinking water. The birds were fed PKC, FPKCa and FPKCb with indigestible marker. All the chickens were allowed free access to the test ingredients and drinking water for 4 days. The birds were slaughtered; ileal digesta were individually collected, pooled within each replicate in plastic cups; and immediately kept at –20°C for chemical analysis. The findings showed that the process of SSF by cellulolytic bacteria increased the levels of CP from 16.43% in the PKC to 16.68% and 16.80% in FPKCb and FPKCa, respectively. The AID of CP was increased in FPKC compared to the PKC. Additionally, there was an increase in the digestibilities of AA in FPKC compared to untreated PKC. The process of SSF decreased the fibres in FPKC, and there was improvement in the nutrient value of FPKC by cellulolytic bacterial cultures in terms of nutrient content and digestibility

Effect of feeding palm kernel cake fermented by fiber degrading bacteria on performance of broiler chicken

Malaysia has an abundant amount of palm kernel cake (PKC), which is considered to be an agro-industrial waste after the extraction process of oil from palm fruits. The challenge of using the PKC in the poultry diet is the presence of the high levels of fibers. were conducted to investigate the effect of palm kernel cake fermented Based on the limitation and importance of using the PKC in broiler diets, it appears to be necessary to improve the nutritive value of this by-product by solid state fermentation (SSF) using fiber degrading bacteria. Therefore, four experiments by cellulolytic bacteria (FPKC) on the performance of broiler. The objectives of the first two experiments were to characterize the cellulolytic bacteria in terms of their properties of producing cellulolytic enzymes; in addition, to improve the nutritive value of the PKC via SSF. In addition, a digestibility trial was conducted to investigate the effect of FPKC on crude protein (CP) and amino acids (AA) digestibility on broiler chickens. The fourth experiment was carried out to study the effect of FPKC on broiler growth performance, carcass and meat quality, nutrient digestibility, villi height, gut microflora and blood biochemistry. In the first experiment, nine cellulolytic bacteria were characterized in different substrates; carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) or xylan from birchwood or locus bean gum (LBG) galactomannan. Results showed that Bacillus amyloliquefaciens DSMZ 1067, Bacillus megaterium ATCC 9885, Paenibacillus curdlanolyticus DSMZ 10248, and Paenibacillus polymyxa ATCC 842 produced higher enzymes activities compared to the other bacterial cultures grown in different substrates. In the second experiment, the PKC was undergone SSF by the four cellulolytic bacteria mentioned earlier. The findings observed that bacterial cultures produced high enzymes activities at the 4th day of SSF, and decreased to zero at the 8th day of SSF. Moreover, the fiber contents were significantly decreased (P< 0.05) and the reducing sugars were significantly increased (P< 0.05) in FPKC compared with untreated PKC. In the third experiment, a total of 24 broiler chickens were randomly distributed into three treatments: untreated PKC, FPKCa by P. polymyxa ATCC 842 and FPKCb by P. curdlanolyticus DSMZ 10248. The findings showed that of CP was increased from 16.47% in the untreated PKC to 16.68% and 16.80% in FPKCa and FPKCb, respectively. In addition, the apparent ileal digestibility (AID) of CP and glutamate were significantly (P< 0.05) increased in FPKCa compared to the untreated PKC. The rest of AA digestibility were increased in FPKC but not significantly different (P> 0.05). In the fourth experiment, a total of 245 one-day-old broiler chicks were randomly distributed to seven dietary treatments containing 0, 5, 10 and 15% PKC and 5, 10 15% FPKC by P. polymyxa ATCC 842. The results showed that the addition of 10 or 15% PKC in broiler diets led to a significant (P<0.05) decrease in the growth performance and nutrient digestibility. However, it was significantly (P<0.05) improved in groups of chickens fed with 10 or 15% FPKC compared with those fed with 10 or 15% PKC. The relative weight of the gizzard was significantly (P< 0.05) higher for the broiler group fed with 15% PKC compared to those birds fed with the negative control or FPKC at three weeks of age. No significant (P> 0.05) differences were observed between the dietary treatments in terms of meat quality, blood biochemistry, villi height and internal organs. Nevertheless, gut microflora were significantly improved (P< 0.05) in birds fed with 15% FPKC compared to the other dietary treatments. In conclusion, PKC fermented by P. polymyxa ATCC 842 could be fed to broiler chickens up to 15% in their rations without any adverse effects on their growth performance