Low dietary oyster mushroom spent substrate limitedly ameliorates detrimental effects of feeding combined marula seed cake and mucuna seed meal as soya bean replacements in broiler chickens

This study investigated ameliorative effects of dietary oyster mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus) spent substrate (OMSS) in broiler chickens fed diets supplemented with combined marula seed cake (MSC) and mucuna seed meal (MSM) replacing soya bean meal (SBM). In a completely randomised design (CRD), 400 day-old Ross 308 chicks were randomly allocated to 5 iso-nitrogenous-energetic diets (control with 100% SBM, control with 60% MSC and 40% MSM replacing SBM (MSC + MSM), MSC + MSM with 1.25% OMSS, MSC + MSM with 2.5% OMSS, and MSC + MSM with 5% OMSS) each with 8 replicate pens of 10 during starter, grower and finisher phases. Dietary MSC + MSM decreased (P < 0.001) feed intake (FI), body weight gain (BWG), and feed conversion efficiency (FCE); slaughter weight, hot carcass weight (HCW), cold carcass weight (CCW), breast weight, and back lengths (P < 0.001); serum SDMA and alanine transaminase (P < 0.05). In contrast, it increased the weights of the thigh (P < 0.001), wing (P < 0.01), liver (P < 0.001), proventriculus (P < 0.001), gizzard (P < 0.001), duodenum (P < 0.001), jejunum (P < 0.001), ileum (P < 0.001), and caecum (P < 0.01) and serum alkaline phosphatase (P < 0.05) and cholesterol (P < 0.01). Further, it increased meat redness and decreased its hue angle at 45 min post-slaughter (P < 0.01) whilst it decreased its pH (P < 0.01) and increased its shear force (P < 0.05) at 24 h post-slaughter. Compared to higher levels, low (1.25%) dietary OMSS improved, though limitedly, FI, BWG, and FCE at grower and finisher phases only (P < 0.001) whilst it reversed MSC plus MSM-induced deleterious effects on slaughter weight, HCW, and CCW (P < 0.001) and increases in gizzard weight (P < 0.001) and meat shear force at 24 h post-slaughter (P < 0.05). Otherwise, OMSS generally decreased (P < 0.05) serum SDMA and alanine transaminase whilst it abrogated and augmented increases in serum alkaline phosphatase (P < 0.05) and cholesterol (P < 0.01), respectively, and reversed the increase and decrease in meat redness (P < 0.01) and hue angle (P < 0.05), respectively. In conclusion, dietary replacement of SBM with combined MSC plus MSM induced deleterious effects in broiler chickens that were limitedly abrogated by low (1.25%) inclusion level of OMSS.

Dietary supplementation of low levels of unprocessed Mucuna pruriens utilis seed meal induces mild antinutritional entero-physio-metabolic perturbations without compromising performance and meat quality in finisher broilers

The rapidly growing world human population accentuates the need for improved production especially of protein-rich food. Broiler meat production offers opportunity to ensure security of this food. However, the production of modern broilers is not only limited by high feed costs due to dietary use of expensive energy and protein sources but also their meat possesses undesirable quality attributes. This study thus examined the effect of dietary Mucuna pruriens utilis seed meal (MSM) on growth performance, blood profile, carcass traits, and meat quality in finisher broiler chickens. In a completely randomised design (CRD), 320 21-day-old chicks were randomly allocated to 32 pens in which they were allotted 4 dietary treatments with 0, 2.5, 5, and 10% MSM, each with 8 replicate pens of 10 birds, for 28 days. Growth performance, carcass characteristics, internal organs, haemato-biochemistry, and meat quality were measured. Results showed that dietary MSM did not affect (P > 0.05) broiler performance, weights, and lengths of carcass cuts and internal organs, haematology, and meat quality. The only exception was MSM-induced increase in duodenal weight (linear, P < 0.05) and serum phosphorus (quadratic, P = 0.05) in contrast to a decrease in procalcitonin (quadratic, P < 0.01) and serum levels of total protein (linear, P < 0.05; and quadratic, P < 0.01), albumin (quadratic, P < 0.05), and bilirubin (quadratic, P = 0.001). Therefore, MSM could be supplemented up to 10% without compromising performance, carcass traits, internal organs, haemato-biochemistry, and meat quality in finisher broiler diets.

Exploration of Zingiber officinale effects on growth performance, immunity and gut morphology in broilers

The current study aimed to determine the effects of different levels of Zingiber officinale as a herbal feed additive on growth performance, carcass characteristic, serum biochemistry, total bacterial count (TBC), gut morphology, and immunological parameters of broilers. A total of 1500, day-old broiler chicks (Hubbard) were equally accredited to five treatment groups, each with six replicates (50 birds/replicate). Five experimental diets were prepared using basal diet i.e. with antibiotics positive control (PC), 3 g/kg ginger (group A), 6 g/kg ginger (group B), 9 g/kg ginger (group C) and without antibiotics negative control (NC). Group A and C showed significantly (p<0.05) higher feed intake (FI) as compared to other groups. Group C showed significantly (p<0.05) lower Total bacterial count (TBC) followed by group B as compared to NC. Carcass characteristics showed non-significant effects among different treatments. Mean villi length and width were significantly (p <0.05) higher in all ginger supplemented groups as compared to the control groups. Blood serum parameters including cholesterol, triglycerides, and low-density lipoproteins (LDL) were significantly (p<0.05) lower in groups B and C in comparison with the control groups. Whereas high-density lipoproteins (HDL) was significantly higher in group B as compared to the others. In conclusion, ginger supplementation @0.6% in the basal diet significantly improved growth performance and gut morphometry of broilers. It also showed a positive impact on cholesterol, triglycerides and gut microbes. Therefore, ginger could be a better substitute for antibiotic growth promoters.