Animal feed: the way forward

The poultry and livestock industry is a globalised industry and poultry is one of the fastest growing sectors in Malaysia. Malaysians are one of the highest poultry meat consuming populations in the world with per-capita consumption of about 40 kg/person/year and the overall consumption is expected to increase over the years. Even though our self-sufficiency level (SSL) is high for poultry and swine production, there is a need to meet the increasing meat demands, not just in the local but also in the international market. Animal feedstuffs and feed additives, which are largely imported, are getting costlier by the day resulting in a higher cost of production which is a major setback for our local animal production industry. This has prompted animal scientists to seek alternatives to formulate a more cost effective feed that is able to meet the minimum nutrient requirements of animals without compromising the quality of the output. Focus has been given to postbiotic metabolites produced from lactic acid bacteria (LAB) and other additives such as prebiotic, probiotic, organic acids and phytogenic compounds due to various factors such as food safety concerns. Locally available agricultural waste which is produced abundantly by agriculture sector, such as palm kernel cake, is important in our research, as feedstuff for animal feeding. The mechanisms of postbiotic metabolite actions and their importance are discussed herein. Today’s lecture covers the need for constant research in this area and to explore newer approaches for animal production. On the application aspect, this lecture will provide substantial information on future prospects of environmental friendly feed additives and precision in feed formulation

Effects of dietary protein and inulin on growth and nitrogen balance in growing pigs.

This study was conducted to determine the effects of dietary protein and inulin on growth, nitrogen balance and feces characteristics in growing pigs. The diet treatments were two levels of CP, 18% and 14% with or without 0.3% inulin addition. Daily live weight gain (DLWG) and feed conversion ratio (FCR) were not affected by the dietary treatments. However, N intake and N excretion were decreased (P<0.05) with reduced CP level. Addition of inulin had no effect on the total amount of N excretion, but tended to shift N excretion from urine to feces. It is concluded that reduction of dietary CP up to 14% in diet of growing pigs will reduce N excretion and thereby environmental pollution

Effects of feeding probiotic metabolites on the growth and carcass characteristics of broiler chicken.

The objectives of the study were to determine the effects of probiotic metabolites on the growth rates, feed conversion ratios and carcass characteristics of broiler chicken in an attempt to determine the potential use of probiotic metabolites to replace antimicrobial growth promoters. Three hundred day-old Cobb chicks were reared for 42 days. The five treatment groups comprised of one negative control without antibiotics or probiotic metabolites added into the feed, one positive control with antibiotic added, and the other three comprised of treatment groups with probiotic metabolites added at different concentrations, namely 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5%, respectively. The liquid metabolites added were from four strains of Lactobacillus plantarum isolated locally from fermented soya bean (tempeh) and tapioca (tapai ubi). The 60 chicks were assigned to each treatment comprising of six replicates. Each replicate comprising 10 chicks was randomly assigned to battery cages which are kept indoors. The feed and drinking water were provided ad libitum. The chickens were weighed individually every week and the feed weights were also recorded. Nine chickens from each treatment selected, using a stratified random method, were slaughtered at the end of the third week and at the end of the sixth week. Liver and gizzard were weighed while the duodenum, jejunum and ileum were measured. The 1.5% concentration of probiotic metabolites used was an effective dose to be supplemented for growth promoting purposes. The effect of probiotic metabolites on growth was good especially at the early stages. Probiotic metabolites significantly (p0.05) changes to the weight gain. On the contrary, probiotic metabolites improved weight gain numerically especially at the first three weeks. The live weight gain was comparable to those of the antibiotic treatment group. The 1.5% MET also had a low feed conversion at both week 1-3 and week 1-6, contrary to the antibiotic group, which had high feed conversion ratios during week 1-3, although not significant (p>0.05). The probiotic metabolites appear to be potential replacements for antimicrobial growth promotants. The effect of probiotic metabolites on the carcass characteristic was less prominent compared to the growth performances. It was deduced from the results that probiotic metabolites do not have a direct effect on the gizzard. The probiotic metabolites have protective effects on the liver as the liver of the 1.5% probiotic metabolite group was significantly (p0.05) in liver weights between treatment groups. There was no particular effect of the probiotic metabolites on the intestinal length. However, there were correlations (t<0.05) between the feed intake and intestinal length

Amino acids fortification of low-protein diet for broilers under tropical climate. 2. Nonessential amino acids and increasing essential amino acids

A three-week trial was carried out to evaluate the effect of nonessential amino acids (NEAA) supplementation to a low-crude protein (CP) diet with adequate essential amino acids (EAA) level on growth performance, blood metabolites, and relative weights of abdominal fat, breast yield, and internal organs in broiler chickens raised under tropical hot and humid environment. Five isocaloric (3000 metabolisable energy/kg) corn-soybean diets were administered (1 to 21 days) to 5 groups of broilers (60 birds/group) as follows: i) 22.2% CP (positive control; PC); ii) 16.2% CP+all EAA to meet or exceed the National Research Council (1994) recommendations (negative control; NC); iii) NC+further EAA to equal the levels in the PC diet; iv) NC+NEAA to equal the levels in the PC; v) NC+EAA and NEAA to equal the amino acids levels in the PC diet. The results showed that the fortification of EAA alone, only improved feed intake (FI), whereas, addition of NEAA or EAA+NEAA significantly enhanced body weight, daily weight gain, and FI and decreased the feed conversion ratio to the same levels as in PC. Serum uric acid was significantly reduced and serum triglyceride increased in NC group. Dietary treatments had no significant effect on relative weights of heart, liver, abdominal fat, breast meat yield, serum albumin, and serum total protein. In conclusion, these results suggest that NEAA fortification may improve the growth performance of broilers fed an excessive low-CP diet under tropical hot and humid condition

Fatty acid composition, fat deposition, lipogenic gene expression and performance of broiler fed diet supplemented with different sources of oil

The present study assessed the effect of feeding palm oil (PO), sunflower oil (SO) and their combination on performance, fat deposition, fatty acid composition and lipogenic gene expression of broilers reared for 42 days. A total of 144 1-day-old broilers (Cobb500) were randomly allotted into four treatment diets with each having six replicates of six chicks in each replicate following a completely randomized design. Live weight gain and feed efficiency was significantly (P < 0.05) higher in birds fed with a combination of oil sources compared to controls. Birds fed with the combination of oil and SO alone had higher carcass yield and lower abdominal fat. Higher (P < 0.05) concentrations of unsaturated fatty acids (UFA) and lower concentrations of palmitic acid and saturated fatty acid (SFA) was found in birds fed SO alone and combinations of SO and PO. Furthermore, the outcomes showed that birds fed diet supplemented with SO and the combination of SO and PO down-regulated gene expression of key hepatic lipogenic enzymes of fatty acids synthase (FAS), acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACC) and stearoyl-CoA desaturase (SCD). These findings suggest that the diet containing the combination of 2% PO and 4% SO may reduce hepatic lipogenesis, as well as lower abdominal fat content of broilers

Prevalence of antimicrobial-resistant Escherichia coli infections in diarrhoeic piglets

The prevalence of antimicrobial resistance Escherichia coli infection in diarrhoeic piglets was studied. Sixty-five samples were collected from 10 farms in Penang, Perak and Selangor. Escherichia coli isolated from the samples were subjected to antimicrobial sensitivity test. The results showed that Escherichia coli was highly resistant to oxytetracylcine (100%), nalidixic acid (96.8%), trimethoprim-sulfadimthoxine (95.1 %), chloramphenicol (91.9%), enrofloxacin (90.3 %), ampicilllin (85.5 %), kanamycin (74.2 %) and neomycin (71.3 %). However, Escherichia coli was sensitive to apramycin and colistin sulphate. Most of the Escherichia coli isolates showed multiple resistance to the antimicrobials tested in this study

The prevalence of antimicrobial resistant salmonella spp. and the risk factors associated with their occurrence in finisher pigs in Seberang Perai, Malaysia

Across sectional study to determine the occurrence and antimicrobial resistance pattern of Salmonella spp. in finishing pigs was carried out at 12 selected pig farms. The farm characteristics and certain management practices associated with the occurrence of Salmonella spp. were also evaluated. Rectal swabs were collected aseptically from 210 randomly selected finishing pigs. Suspect Salmonella colonies isolated were identified using a set of conventional biochemical tests and these isolates were sent to the Veterinary Research Institute (VRI) for serotyping. The antimicrobial sensitivity test was conducted on the isolates against a panel of selected antimicrobials that are commonly used in local pig production using disc diffusion method. In addition, a questionnaire on the management of farms, herd health programme,and common antimicrobial usage was collected from farm representative, resulting in variables that could be analyzed to identify factors associated with the occurrence of Salmonella. The results showed that 32 out of 210 finishing pigs (15.2%)tested were positive for Salmonella typhimurium and the isolates were detected from 9 out of 12 farms sampled (75.0%).Most of the isolates showed a relatively high level of antimicrobial resistance. The occurrence of Salmonella in pigs were significantly associated with (1) farms which were not equipped with footbath or vehicle wheels dip; (2) farms with vermins/birds in the surrounding; (3) farms with less frequent pen cleaning and (4) farms which are located adjacent to the neighbouring farms

Effects of Feeding Fat During Pregnancy and Lactation on Growth Performance, Milk Composition and Very Low Density Lipoprotein Composition in Rats

The effects of dietary fat during pregnancy and lactation on growth performance of pups, milk composition and very low density lipoprotein composition in rats were studied. A total of 33 dams were used in this study and each litter was adjusted to 8 pups per dam. The dams were fed on high fat (150 g fat/kg diet, HF), medium fat (75 g fat/kg of diet, MF) and low fat (2.5 g fat/kg diet, LF) diets. The body weights of dams increased during pregnancy and decreased after pregnancy. The HF pups had a higher body weight and higher weight gain than those of LF pups. The amount of feed intake of HF dams was significantly higher than LF and MF dams. The HF dams had significantly higher milk fat and water concentrations than LF dams. The milk protein was not significantly different among the treatment groups. All dams showed hypertriacylglycerolaemia in their very low density lipoprotein (VLDL) in late pregnancy. The VLDL-protein concentrations increased during the first week after parturition. The HF dams showed a greater response to the dietary fat than that of LF and MF dams. The findings suggest that addition of fat in the diet during pregnancy and lactation may improve the milk quality through modifying the composition of VLDL contents, leading to better growth of pups

Effects of feeding metabolite combinations from Lactobacillus plantarum on plasma and breast meat lipids in broiler chickens.

The effects of feeding different doses of metabolite combination of L. plantarum RS5, RI11, RG14 and RG11 strains (Com3456) on cholesterol reduction in plasma and breast meat in broiler chickens and the possible mechanism was studied. A total of 504 male Ross broilers were grouped into 7 treatments and offered with different diets: (i) standard corn-soybean based diet (-ve control); (ii) standard cornsoybean based diet + neomycin and oxytetracycline (+ve control); (iii) standard corn-soybean based diet + 0.1% metabolite combination of L. plantarum RS5, RI11, RG14 and RG11 strains (Com3456); (iv) standard corn-soybean based diet + 0.2% of Com3456; (v) standard cornsoybean based diet + 0.3% of Com3456 (vi) standard corn-soybean based diet + 0.4% of Com3456 and (vii) standard corn-soybean based diet + 0.5% of Com3456. The metabolite combinations supplemented in the diet of broilers reduced protein, cholesterol esters concentration in very low-density lipoprotein particles. The present of organic acids and proteinaceous compound in the metabolite combinations as found in previous study also increased lactic acid bacteria count in small intestine digesta and improved bile salts deconjugation ability of lactic acid bacteria

Purification and characterization of very low density lipoprotein in commercial broiler and crossbred village chickens by fast protein liquid chromatography

Very low density lipoprotein (VLDL) of commercial broiler (CB) and crossbred village chicken (AK) was purified using Fast Protein Liquid Chromatography (FPLC). The fraction collected was then confirmed as VLDL using 4% polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The particle size of VLDL is 46.8 8.6 nm. The VLDL fraction was then subfractionated and the apolipoprotein (apo) profile was studied by sodium dodecyl sulphate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDSPAGE). The CB and AK have almost similar types of apo in both subfractions 1 and 2. The AK showed the presence of apoAI, AIV, D and E whereas the CB had apo AIV, D, E and H. The apo AIV and apo E were present in both subfractions of AK and CB