Probiotic mixture (Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus licheniformis) a potential in-feed additive to improve broiler production efficiency, nutrient digestibility, caecal microflora, meat quality and to diminish hazardous odour emission

Bacillus subtilis JATP3 improved the immunity of weaned piglets by improving intestinal flora and producing citalopram

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the ability of Bacillus subtilis JATP3 to stimulate immune response and improve intestinal health in piglets during the critical weaning period. Twelve 28-day-old weaned piglets were randomly divided into two groups. One group was fed a basal diet, while the other group was fed a basal diet supplemented with B. subtilis JATP3 (1 × 109 CFU/mL; 10 mL) for 28 days. The results revealed a significant increase in the intestinal villus gland ratio of weaned piglets following the inclusion of B. subtilis JATP3 (P < 0.05). Inclusion of a probiotic supplement improve the intestinal flora of jejunum and ileum of weaned piglets. Metabolomics analysis demonstrated a notable rise in citalopram levels in the jejunum and ileum, along with elevated levels of isobutyric acid and isocitric acid in the ileum. The results of correlation analysis show that indicated a positive correlation between citalopram and microbial changes. Furthermore, the probiotic-treated group exhibited a significant upregulation in the relative expression of Claudin, Zonula Occludens 1 (ZO-1), and Interleukin 10 (IL-10) in the jejunum and ileum, while displaying a noteworthy reduction in the relative expression of Interleukin 1β (IL-1β). Overall, these findings suggest that B. subtilis JATP3 can safeguard intestinal health by modulating the structure of the intestinal microbiota and their metabolites, wherein citalopram might be a key component contributing to the therapeutic effects of B. subtilis JATP3.

Insights into the evaluation, influential factors and improvement strategies for poultry meat quality: a review

Poultry meat, an essential source of animal protein, requires stringent safety and quality measures to address public health concerns and growing international attention. This review examines both direct and indirect factors that compromise poultry meat quality in intensive farming systems. It highlights the integration of rapid and micro-testing with traditional methods to assess meat safety. The paper advocates for adopting probiotics, prebiotics, and plant extracts to improve poultry meat quality.

Improving quality of poultry and its meat products with probiotics, prebiotics, and phytoextracts

Remarkable changes have occurred in poultry farming and meat processing in recent years, driven by advancements in breeding technology, feed processing technology, farming conditions, and management practices. The incorporation of probiotics, prebiotics, and phytoextracts has made significant contributions to the development of poultry meat products that promote both health and functionality throughout the growth phase and during meat processing. Poultry fed with these substances improve meat quality, while incorporating probiotics, prebiotics, and phytoextracts in poultry processing, as additives or supplements, inhibits pathogens and offers health benefits to consumers. However, it is vital to assess the safety of functional fermented meat products containing these compounds and their potential effects on consumer health. Currently, there's still uncertainty in these aspects. Additionally, research on utilizing next-generation probiotic strains and synergistic combinations of probiotics and prebiotics in poultry meat products is in its early stages. Therefore, further investigation is required to gain a comprehensive understanding of the beneficial effects and safety considerations of these substances in poultry meat products in the future. This review offered a comprehensive overview of the applications of probiotics and prebiotics in poultry farming, focusing on their effects on nutrient utilization, growth efficiency, and gut health. Furthermore, potential of probiotics, prebiotics, and phytoextracts in enhancing poultry meat production was explored for improved health benefits and functionality, and possible issues associated with the use of these substances were discussed. Moreover, the conclusions drawn from this review and potential future perspectives in this field are presented.

Dietary Paenibacillus polymyxa AM20 as a new probiotic: Improving effects on IR broiler growth performance, hepatosomatic index, thyroid hormones, lipid profile, immune response, antioxidant parameters, and caecal microorganisms

The search for a natural antimicrobial agent is ongoing and critical because of the rise and rapid proliferation of antibiotic-resistant pathogenic bacteria. The current study aims to examine the effect of Paenibacillus polymyxa AM20 as an alternative antibiotic and feed additive on Indian river broiler performance, digestive enzymes, thyroid hormones, lipid profile, hepatosomatic index, immunological response, gut bacteria, and antioxidant parameters. The bacterial isolate AM20 was identified at the gene level by isolating DNA and using PCR to detect genes. Based on 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis, the bacterial isolate was identified as Paenibacillus polymyxa. One hundred twenty Indian river broilers (1-day old) were randomly divided into 4 groups of 10 chicks each, with 3 replicates. The control group was fed a basal diet only, while the other 3 were administered control diets supplemented with P. polymyxa at 3 concentrations: 0.5, 1, and 1.5 mg/kg. The findings revealed that all groups that received graded amounts of P. polymyxa increased all growth parameters throughout the study. P. polymyxa treatment at 1.5 mg/kg increased body gain by 9% compared to the control due to increased feed intake (P = 0.0001), growth rate (P = 0.0001), and decreased feed conversion ratio. Compared to the control group, P. polymyxa (1.5 mg/kg) enhanced kidney functions in chickens by reducing uric acid and creatinine levels (P = 0.0451). Compared to the control group, alanine aminotransferase and aspartate transaminase levels in the liver were significantly reduced at all P. polymyxa doses. Liver function values were highest for P. polymyxa at 1.5 mg/kg. Compared to the control group, those whose diets included P. polymyxa had significantly better blood cholesterol levels, high-density lipoprotein, low-density lipoprotein, immunological response, thyroid function, and gut microbiota. In general, broiler chickens' economic efficiency was improved by including P. polymyxa in their diet, which also improved their growth performance, carcass dressing, specific blood biochemical levels and enzymes, and the composition of the gut microbiota.

Influences of flavonoid (quercetin) inclusion to corn-soybean-gluten meal-based diet on broiler performance

Quercetin (a predominant flavonoid) is considered to have antimicrobial and antioxidant properties. This trial was conducted to evaluate the impact of graded doses of quercetin (QS) on growth efficiency, nutrient retention, faecal score, footpad lesion score, tibia ash and meat quality. In a 32-day feeding test, a total of 576 1-day-old Ross 308 broilers (male) were allocated arbitrarily with an average body weight of 41 ± 0.5 g. The trial had four dietary treatments with eight repetitions of 18 birds per pen and a basal diet incorporating 0%, 0.02%, 0.04% and 0.06% of QS. As the QS dosage increased, body weight gain tended to increase linearly on Days 9-21 (p = 0.069) and overall period (p = 0.079). Similarly, feed intake increased (p = 0.009) linearly with the increasing doses of QS on Days 9-21. Likewise, there was a linear improvement in dry matter (p = 0.002) and energy (p = 0.016) digestibility after QS administration. Moreover, the inclusion of QS supplement (0%-0.06%) linearly increased (p = 0.012) tibia ash in broilers. However, the faecal score and footpad lesion score showed no significant outcome (p > 0.05). By giving broilers a graded amount of QS, the relative organ weights of breast muscle (p = 0.009) and spleen (p = 0.006) improved linearly, meat colour lightness increased (p = 0.015), redness tended to improve (p = 0.065) linearly and drip loss decreased (p = 0.015) linearly. The inclusion of QS in the graded-level diet led to improvements in growth efficiency, nutrient absorption, meat quality and tibia ash, which recommended it as a beneficial feed additive for the broiler.

An evaluation of gallic acid supplementation to corn-soybean-gluten meal-based diet in broilers

Gallic acid (GA) is an endogenous plant polyphenol found in fruits, nuts, and plants that has antioxidant, antimicrobial, and growth-promoting effects. This study aimed to assess the effect of graded doses of dietary supplemented GA on growth performance, nutrient retention, fecal score, footpad lesion score, tibia ash, and meat quality of broilers. A total of 576 one-day-old Ross 308 male broiler chicks with an average initial body weight of 41 ± 0.5 g were used in a 32 d feeding trial. Broilers were sorted into 4 treatments, 8 replications per treatment, and 18 birds per cage. Dietary treatments consisted of corn-soybean-gluten meal-based basal diet and the basal diet supplemented with 0, 0.02, 0.04, and 0.06% of GA. Feeding broilers with a graded doses of GA increased body weight gain (BWG) (P < 0.05) and feed intake (P < 0.05) linearly on phase 2 (d 9-21). Additionally, the nutrient digestibility of dry matter (P < 0.05) and energy (P < 0.05) was increased linearly by including a rising level of GA in the broiler diet. However, the excreta score, footpad lesion score, tibia ash, and meat quality presented no significant effect (P > 0.05) except meat color of yellowness. Adding GA at increasing doses to broiler diets increased growth efficiency and nutritional absorption without affecting excreta score, footpad lesion score, tibia ash, and meat quality. In conclusion, the inclusion of graded levels of GA to corn-soybean-gluten meal-based diet presented dose-dependent improvement in growth performance and nutrient digestibility of broilers.

The different trends in the burden of neurological and mental disorders following dietary transition in China, the USA, and the world: An extension analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019

Introduction

The highly processed western diet is substituting the low-processed traditional diet in the last decades globally. Increasing research found that a diet with poor quality such as western diet disrupts gut microbiota and increases the susceptibility to various neurological and mental disorders, while a balanced diet regulates gut microbiota and prevents and alleviates the neurological and mental disorders. Yet, there is limited research on the association between the disease burden expanding of neurological and mental disorders with a dietary transition.

Methods

We compared the disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) trend by age for neurological and mental disorders in China, in the United States of America (USA), and across the world from 1990 to 2019, evaluated the dietary transition in the past 60 years, and analyzed the association between the burden trend of the two disorders with the changes in diet composition and food production.

Results

We identified an age-related upward pattern in disease burden in China. Compared with the USA and the world, the Chinese neurological and mental disorders DALY percent was least in the generation over 75 but rapidly increased in younger generations and surpassed the USA and/or the world in the last decades. The age-related upward pattern in Chinese disease burdens had not only shown in the presence of cardiovascular diseases, neoplasms, and diabetes mellitus but also appeared in the presence of depressive disorders, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease and other dementias, schizophrenia, headache disorders, anxiety disorders, conduct disorders, autism spectrum disorders, and eating disorders, successively. Additionally, the upward trend was associated with the dramatic dietary transition including a reduction in dietary quality and food production sustainability, during which the younger generation is more affected than the older. Following the increase in total calorie intake, alcohol intake, ratios of animal to vegetal foods, and poultry meat to pulses, the burdens of the above diseases continuously rose. Then, following the rise of the ratios of meat to pulses, eggs to pulses, and pork to pulses, the usage of fertilizers, the farming density of pigs, and the burdens of the above disease except diabetes mellitus were also ever-increasing. Even the usage of pesticides was positively correlated with the burdens of Parkinson's disease, schizophrenia, cardiovascular diseases, and neoplasms. Contrary to China, the corresponding burdens of the USA trended to reduce with the improvements in diet quality and food production sustainability.

Discussion

Our results suggest that improving diet quality and food production sustainability might be a promising way to stop the expanding burdens of neurological and mental disorders.