Application of Baltic Pine (Pinus sylvestris) Needle Extract as a Gut Microbiota-Modulating Feed Supplement for Domestic Chickens (Gallus gallus)

Funding Information: This research was funded within the framework of the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) program, grant number 18-00-A01620-000042. Publisher Copyright: © 2023 by the authors.The valorization of wood industry residues is very desirable from a circular economy perspective. Pine needle extracts are known for their health-promoting properties and therefore can be used as herbal remedies and nutritional supplements. Since the withdrawal of antibiotics as growth promoters in the European Union, natural feed additives that improve poultry health and production are needed. It was proposed that pine needle extract could be a good alternative to antibiotic usage at sub-therapeutic concentrations. The results relevant to our assumption could be obtained by using domestic chickens as an in vivo model for the evaluation of gut microbiota-altering properties of pine needle extract as an herbal supplement. We tested the antimicrobial effects of Baltic pine (Pinus sylvestris) needle extract. Then, we used chicken (Gallus gallus) that received feed supplemented with two different concentrations of the extract for 40 days to evaluate the changes in gut microbiota using 16S rRNA gene sequencing. This preliminary study demonstrated trends toward dose-dependent desirable changes in broiler microbiome, such as a reduction in the relative abundance of Campylobacter.publishersversionPeer reviewe

Development of capsulateD Dosage form containing thick extract of pine neeDles kapsulinių vaisto formų, turinčių tirštojo pušų spyglių ekstrakto, kūrimas

1 Rygos Stradins universiteto Vaistų formos technologijos katedra 2 BF-esse, Ltd., Ryga, Latvija 3 Valstybinis Latvijos miškininkystės tyrimų institutas "Silava", Salaspilis, Latvija SANTRAUKA Reikšminiai žodžiai: tirštasis pušų spyglių ekstraktas, minkštosios želatinos kapsulės, glicerolio monooleatas, karotenų kiekis. Darbo tikslas. Sukurti vaisto formą tirštąjam pušų spyglių ekstraktui. Pagamintos minkštos želatinos kapsulės turinčios 300 mg tirštojo pušų spyglių ekstrakto. Įvertinta drėgmės kiekio tirštajame pušų spyglių ekstrakte ir emulsiklio įtaka vaisto formos stabilumui. Taip pat tirta keletas kapsuliavimo metodų. Tyrimo medžiaga ir metodai. Tirštasis pušų spyglių ekstraktas kapsulių užpildymui buvo paruoštas su augaliniu aliejumi ir emulsikliais. Minkštosios želatinos kapsulės buvo paruoštos panardinimo, lašelių ir štampavimo metodais. Įvertinta kapsulių išvaizda, masės vientisumas, suirimo laikas ir karotenų kiekis. Šie stabilumo tyrimai atlikti esant 25 ± 2°C / 60 ± 5 proc. ir 30 ± 2° C / 65 ± 5 proc. santykiniam drėgnumui. Rezultatai. Želatinos kapsulės su tirštuoju pušų spyglių ekstraktu turinčiu aukštą drėgmės kiekį (apie 40 proc.) buvo nestabilios, suiro atliekant stabilumo testą. Kapsulės su tirštuoju pušų spyglių ekstraktu, kurio drėgmės kiekis buvo ne daugiau 10 proc., augliniu aliejumi ir glicerolio monooleatu, paruoštos lašelių būdu, išliko kokybiškos 24 stabilumo tyrimo mėnesius. Išvados. Želatinos kapsulės gali būti pagaminotos naudojant tirštąjį pušų spyglių ekstraktą, turintį ne daugiau kaip 10 proc. drėgmės ir lakių medžiagų. Pramoninei gamybai gali būti taikomas rotacinio štampavimo metodas. ABSTRAcT Key words: thick extract of pine needles, soft gelatin capsules, glycerol monooleate, content of carotenes. The aim of the study. To develop a dosage form of thick extract of pine needles. Soft gelatin capsules with 300 mg of thick extract of pine needles were prepared. The influence of the content of moisture of thick extract and the type of emulsifying agent on the stability of prepared capsules was evaluated. The possibility to apply different encapsulating methods was investigated. Materials and methods. Thick extract of pine needles was used for preparation of formulations with vegetable oils and emulsifying agents for filling into gelatin capsules. Soft gelatin capsules were prepared by dipping, droplet and stamping methods. Capsules were estimated for appearance, uniformity of mass, disintegration and content of carotenes. Stability studies were carried out at 25 ºC ± 2 ºC / 60 % ± 5 % relative humidity and at 30 ºC ± 2 ºC / 65 % ± 5 % relative humidity. Results. Gelatin capsules containing thick extract of pine needles with high content (about 40 %) of moisture were not stable, deformation of capsule shells occurred during stability testing. The capsules containing thick extract of pine needles with content of moisture not more than 10 %, vegetable oil and glycerol monooleate, prepared by dipping method, were stable during 24 months of the long term and the accelerated stability study. Conclusions. Gelatin capsules can be prepared with thick extract of pine needles containing not more than 10 % of moisture and volatile substances. For large scale manufacturing the rotary die method is preferable

Application of Baltic Pine (<i>Pinus sylvestris</i>) Needle Extract as a Gut Microbiota-Modulating Feed Supplement for Domestic Chickens (<i>Gallus gallus</i>)

The valorization of wood industry residues is very desirable from a circular economy perspective. Pine needle extracts are known for their health-promoting properties and therefore can be used as herbal remedies and nutritional supplements. Since the withdrawal of antibiotics as growth promoters in the European Union, natural feed additives that improve poultry health and production are needed. It was proposed that pine needle extract could be a good alternative to antibiotic usage at sub-therapeutic concentrations. The results relevant to our assumption could be obtained by using domestic chickens as an in vivo model for the evaluation of gut microbiota-altering properties of pine needle extract as an herbal supplement. We tested the antimicrobial effects of Baltic pine (Pinus sylvestris) needle extract. Then, we used chicken (Gallus gallus) that received feed supplemented with two different concentrations of the extract for 40 days to evaluate the changes in gut microbiota using 16S rRNA gene sequencing. This preliminary study demonstrated trends toward dose-dependent desirable changes in broiler microbiome, such as a reduction in the relative abundance of Campylobacter