Blood and hair as non-invasive trace element biological indicators in growing rabbits

[EN] The suitability of blood and hair as non-invasive tools to monitor trace element contents was studied in 48 Hyla male growing rabbits. Three diets with increasing organic selenium (Se) addition (0.1, 0.5 and 2.5 mg/kg) were used to induce alterations in the concentrations of trace elements vs. an unsupplemented diet. In blood, a linear decrease in Co (P<0.001), Cu (P<0.001), Mn (P<0.05), Zn (P<0.05), Sb (P<0.001), As (P<0.001), Cr (P<0.001), Mo (P<0.001), Ni (P<0.001) and Cd (P<0.001) concentrations with increasing dietary Se was observed. In hair, a cubic effect of dietary Se on Co (P<0.01), Cu (P<0.05), Mn (P<0.001), Pb (P<0.05), Mo (P<0.05) and Cd (P<0.05) concentrations was found, while As, Cr and Ni concentrations decreased linearly (P<0.01, P<0.01 and P<0.001, respectively) with increasing dietary Se. Selenium was negatively correlated to Sb, As, Cr, Mo, Ni and Cd, (P<0.001) in blood, and to As (P<0.05), Cr, Ni (P<0.01) and Pb (P<0.05) in hair. The contents of Se, As, Cr and Ni in blood were highly correlated (P<0.001) to those in hair. Blood appeared to be more sensitive than hair in detecting small changes in the trace element profile in rabbits, as was indicated by the discriminant analysis. In conclusion, blood and hair can be suitable biological indicators of essential, toxic and potentially toxic trace element status in rabbits, particularly when used complementarily.The authors are grateful to NUEVO S.A. (N Artaki, Euboia, Greece) for providing Sel-Plex®. This research has not received any specific funding.Papadomichelakis, G.; Pappas, AC.; Zoidis, E.; Danezis, G.; Georgiou, KA.; Fegeros, K. (2019). Blood and hair as non-invasive trace element biological indicators in growing rabbits. World Rabbit Science. 27(1):21-30. https://doi.org/10.4995/wrs.2019.10654SWORD2130271Barbosa F.J., Tanus-Santos J.E., Gerlach R.F., Parsons P.J. 2005. 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Phytogenic Administration and Reduction of Dietary Energy and Protein Levels Affects Growth Performance, Nutrient Digestibility and Antioxidant Status of Broilers

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of reduced dietary energy (ME) and protein (CP) levels along with administration of a phytogenic feed additive (PFA) based on oregano, anise and citrus essential oils, on broiler growth performance, nutrient digestibility, meat and blood biochemical parameters and total antioxidant capacity (TAC). Depending on dietary ME and CP level down regulation compared to a corn-soybean meal basal diet A used as positive control, three diet types [A, B(＝A-3%) and C(＝A-6%)] were implemented. Depending on the inclusion or not of PFA at 125 mg/kg diet, 450 1-d old, male Cobb broilers were randomly allocated in six treatments according to a 3×2 factorial arrangement with 5 replicates of 15 broilers; A: diets formulated optimally to meet broiler nutrient requirements for maximizing protein content of meat for starter, grower and finisher growth periods; APh: A+PFA; B: suboptimal in ME and CP levels by 3%; BPh: B+PFA; C: suboptimal in ME and CP levels by 6%; CPh: C+PFA. Feed conversion ratio (FCR) was improved in birds fed diet A compared to diet C during the grower period (PD＝0.021) and overall (PD＝0.010). Phytogenic supplementation resulted in higher (PD×Ph＝0.020) total tract apparent digestibility of fat in birds fed diet C compared to diet A. Birds fed diet A had higher (PD＝0.001) plasma cholesterol, compared to birds fed diet C. In addition, birds fed diets A and B had higher (PD＝0.002) breast protein content compared to C. Overall, PFA inclusion reduced cholesterol (PPh＝0.002) and increased plasma TAC (PPh&lt;0.001). Moreover, PFA increased breast (PPh＝0.001) and thigh (PPh＝0.01) TAC. In conclusion, a reduction in dietary ME and CP levels, adversely affected the FCR, whereas PFA supplementation tended (PPh＝0.089) to compensate these effects. Moreover, the addition of PFA reduced plasma cholesterol and improved plasma and meat TAC

Growth performance, nutrient digestibility, antioxidant capacity, blood biochemical biomarkers and cytokines expression in broiler chickens fed different phytogenic levels

The effects of inclusion levels of a phytogenic feed additive (PFA), characterized by menthol anethol and eugenol, on broiler growth performance, nutrient digestibility, biochemical biomarkers and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) of plasma and meat, as well as on the relative expression of selected cytokines, were studied in a 42-d experiment. A total of 225 one-day-old male Cobb broiler chickens were assigned into 3 treatments, with 5 replicates of 15 chickens each. Chickens were fed maize-soybean meal basal diets following a 3 phase (i.e., starter, grower and finisher) feeding program. Depending on PFA inclusion level, treatments were: no PFA (PFA-0), PFA at 100 mg/kg (PFA-100) and PFA at 150 mg/kg (PFA-150). Feed and water were available ad libitum. Feed conversion ratio (FCR) during finisher phase was improved quadratically (P < 0.05) with increasing PFA level. Overall, increasing PFA level increased body weight gain (BWG) in a linear (P < 0.05) and quadratic (P < 0.05) manner with treatments PFA-100 and PFA-150 being greater (P < 0.05) compared with PFA-0. Total tract apparent digestibility of dry matter increased linearly (P < 0.05) and quadratically (P < 0.05) with increasing PFA level. The apparent metabolizable energy corrected for nitrogen (AMEn) also increased linearly (P < 0.05). Increasing PFA level resulted in a linear (P < 0.05) increase in blood plasma TAC. Expression of pro-inflammatory cytokine interleukin -18 (IL-18) was reduced linearly (P < 0.05) in spleen with increasing PFA level. In conclusion, PFA inclusion at 100 mg/kg diet positively influenced performance, whereas PFA inclusion at 150 mg/kg resulted in a stronger improvement in AMEn and plasma TAC. Finally, PFA inclusion resulted in a pattern of reduced pro-inflammatory biomarker IL-18 at spleen. Overall, this study provides evidence for the beneficial role of PFA as a natural growth and health promoter in broiler chickens that needs to be further confirmed in field studies

Effects of deoxynivalenol and fumonisins on broiler gut cytoprotective capacity

Mycotoxins are a crucial problem for poultry production worldwide. Two of the most frequently found mycotoxins in feedstuffs are deoxynivalenol (DON) and fumonisins (FUM) which adversely affect gut health and poultry performance. The current knowledge on DON and FUM effects on broiler responses relevant for gut detoxification, antioxidant capacity, and health is still unclear. The aim of this study was to assess a range of selected molecular intestinal biomarkers for their responsiveness to the maximum allowable European Union dietary levels for DON (5 mg/kg) and FUM (20 mg/kg) in broilers. For the experimental purpose, a challenge diet was formulated, and biomarkers relevant for detoxification, antioxidant response, stress, inflammation, and integrity were profiled across the broiler intestine. The results reveal that DON significantly (p < 0.05) induced aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) and cytochrome P450 enzyme (CYP) expression mainly at the duodenum. Moreover, DON and FUM had specific significant (p < 0.05) effects on the antioxidant response, stress, inflammation, and integrity depending on the intestinal segment. Consequently, broiler molecular responses to DON and FUM assessed via a powerful palette of biomarkers were shown to be mycotoxin and intestinal site specific. The study findings could be highly relevant for assessing various dietary bioactive components for protection against mycotoxins

Influence of organic selenium supplementation on the accumulation of toxic and essential trace elements involved in the antioxidant system of chicken

The aim of the study was to investigate the interactions between selenium (Se) and various trace elements, both toxic and essential, involved in the antioxidant system. A total of 128 day-old chicks (Gallus gallus, broilers) were used to investigate the effect of Se yeast supplementation on the accumulation of cadmium (Cd), copper (Cu) iron (Fe) and zinc (Zn). There were four replicates of four dietary treatments: T1 (basal diet with no added Se, analyzed to contain 0.21mg kg(-1)), T2 (T1 with 0.15 mg kg(-1) Se added), T3 (T1 with 0.3 mg kg(-1) Se) and T4 (T1 with 3.0 mg kg(-1) Se). At week 4 and 6, two chickens per replicate pen were sacrificed for whole blood, breast muscle and liver sampling. Samples were analyzed by ICP-MS. Supplementation with Se-yeast, not only increased Se concentration but also reduced Cd concentration in the tissues. Selenium was negatively correlated with Cd and positively correlated with Zn, Cu and Fe. Cadmium was negatively correlated with Zn and Cu. Zinc was positively correlated with Cu. Iron was negatively correlated with Cu and uncorrelated with Zn and Cd. The balance between Se, Cu, Fe and Zn is important for proper antioxidant defense since they are an integral part of various antioxidant enzyme