Dietary supplementation of Macleaya cordata extract and Bacillus in combination improve laying performance by regulating reproductive hormones,intestinal microbiota and barrier function of laying hens

Background:This study aimed to investigate whether the combination of Macleaya cordata extract(MCE)and Bacil-lus could improve the laying performance and health of laying hens better.Methods:A total of 36029-week-old Jingbai laying hens were randomly divided into 4 treatments:control group(basal diet),MCE group(basal diet+MCE),Probiotics Bacillus Compound(PBC)group(basal diet+compound Bacil-lus),MCE+PBC group(basal diet+MCE+compound Bacillus).The feeding experiment lasted for 42 d.Results:The results showed that the laying rate and the average daily egg mass in the MCE+PBC group were significantly higher than those in the control group(P<0.05)and better than the MCE and PBC group.Combina-tion of MCE and Bacillus significantly increased the content of follicle-stimulating hormone(FSH)in the serum and up-regulated the expression of related hormone receptor gene(estrogen receptor-β,FSHR and luteinizing hormone/choriogonadotropin receptor)in the ovary of laying hens(P<0.05).In the MCE+PBC group,the mRNA expressions of zonula occluden-1,Occludin and mucin-2 in jejunum was increased and the intestinal epithelial barrier detected by transmission electron microscopy was enhanced compared with the control group(P<0.05).In addition,compared with the control group,combination of MCE and Bacillus significantly increased the total antioxidant capacity and catalase activity(P<0.05),and down-regulated the mRNA expressions of inflammation-related genes(interleukin-1βand tumor necrosis factor-α)as well as apoptosis-related genes(Caspase 3,Caspase 8 and P53)(P<0.05).The concen-tration of acetic acid and butyric acid in the cecum content of laying hens in the MCE+PBC group was significantly increased compared with the control group(P<0.05).Conclusions:Collectively,dietary supplementation of 600μg/kg MCE and 5×108 CFU/kg compound Bacillus can improve laying performance by improving microbiota to enhance antioxidant capacity and intestinal barrier,regulate reproductive hormones and the concentration of cecal short-chain fatty acids of laying hens,and the combined effect of MCE and Bacillus is better than that of single supplementation.

Optimal dietary copper requirements and relative bioavailability for weanling pigs fed either copper proteinate or tribasic copper chloride

Background: The objective of this study was to determine the effects of supplementing Cu on growth performance, Cu metabolism and Cu-related enzyme activities of weanling pigs fed diets with two different Cu sources, and to estimate optimal Cu requirements and relative bioavailability from these two sources for pigs.Methods: Weanling pigs were allocated to 14 treatments arranged factorially, including 6 added Cu levels(5, 10,20, 40, 80, 160 mg/kg), and 2 mineral sources(tribasic Cu chloride, TBCC and copper proteinate, Cu Pro), as well as one negative control(0 mg/kg added Cu level) and one maximum allowed level treatment(200 mg/kg TBCC) for the entire 38-d experiment. Growth performance, mineral status and enzyme activities were measured at the end of this study.Results: Increasing levels of Cu showed linear and quadratic responses(P < 0.01) for final BW, ADG and FCR regardless of the sources. Supplementation with TBCC(> 80 mg/kg) and Cu Pro(> 20 mg/kg) significantly decreased(P < 0.05) diarrhea incidence of weanling pigs. There were linear and quadratic increases(P < 0.01) in bile, hepatic,and intestinal Cu concentrations, fecal Cu contents, and plasma enzyme activities(alkaline phosphatase,ceruloplasmin, Cu, Zn-Superoxide dismutase(Cu/Zn SOD), and glutathione peroxidase), whereas plasma malondialdehyde decreased(P < 0.01) linearly and quadratically as dietary Cu level increased. Similarly, pigs fed Cu Pro absorbed and retained more Cu and excreted less Cu than those fed TBCC when supplemented 80 mg/kg and above. Optimal dietary Cu requirements for pigs from 28 to 66 d of age estimated based on fitted broken-line models(P < 0.05) of bile Cu, plasma Cu/Zn SOD and growth performance were 93–140 mg/kg from TBCC, and 63–98 mg/kg from Cu Pro accordingly. According to slope ratios from multiple linear regression, the bioavailability value of Cu Pro relative to TBCC(100%) was 156–263%(P < 0.01).Conclusion: The findings indicated that Cu recommendation from current NRC(5–6 mg/kg) was not sufficient to meet the high requirement of weanling pigs. Cu from Cu Pro was significantly more bioavailable to weanling pigs than TBCC in stimulating growth and enzyme activities, decreasing diarrhea frequency and fecal Cu contents to the environment.

Probiotic Paenibacillus polymyxa 10 and Lactobacillus plantarum 16 enhance growth performance of broilers by improving the intestinal health

With the ever-growing strict prohibitions on antibiotic growth promoters(AGP)in animal production,in-feed probiotics are becoming attractive alternatives to antibiotics in the poultry industry.To investigate the effects of Paenibacillus polymyxa 10 and Lactobacillus plantarum 16 on the growth performance and intestinal health of broilers,540 male Cobb 500 broilers of 1 d old were randomly divided into 3 groups with 6 replicates per group and 30 chicks per replicate.Broilers were fed with either a basal diet or basal diets supplemented with 1×108 colony-forming units(CFU)/kg P.polymyxa 10(BSC10)or L.plantarum 16(Lac16)for 42 d.Results showed that Lac16 treatment improved(P<0.05)the growth performance(body weight and feed conversion)of broilers at the starter phase,while BSC10 treatment slightly improved(P>0.05)the growth performance of the starter phase broilers.The increased villus height(P<0.05)at d 14,21 and 42 and villus height to crypt depth ratio(P<0.05)at d 14 and 21 were observed in the ileum of the 2 probiotic groups.Besides,transmission electron microscopy results showed that the 2 probiotics enhanced the intestinal epithelial barrier.Both probiotic treatments up-regulated(P<0.05)the mRNA expression of fatty acid binding protein 1(FABP1)and sodium-dependent glucose transporters-1(SGLT-1)in the ileal mucosa of broilers at d 21.In addition,BSC10 and Lac16 treatments significantly(P<0.05)increased the relative abundance of short-chain fatty acids-producing bacteria,such as Butyricicoccus pullicaecorum,Faecalibacterium prausnitzii,Lachnospira and Cop-rococcu,and significantly(P<0.05)decreased the relative abundance of enteric pathogens(Escherichia coli,Bacteroides fragilis and Shigella sonnei).Furthermore,the 2 probiotic treatments also increased the positive connection among the intestinal microbes and the carbohydrate metabolism-related pathways of the intes-tinal bacteria(P<0.05),with decreasing(P<0.05)nucleotides biosynthesis-related pathways of the intestinal bacteria.Overall,these results suggest that the 2 probiotics,especially Lac16,have a potential beneficial effect on the growth performance and intestinal health of starter phase broilers.

Tolerance and safety evaluation of sodium sulfate:A subchronic study in laying hens

Sodium sulfate(Na2SO4)is a readily available chlorine-free source of sodium,which could be used to reduce sodium chloride to maintain the ratio between chlorine and sodium in poultry diets.Dietary supplementation with excessive levels of Na2SO4 might be detrimental to bird's health and per-formance.A subchronic study was carried out to investigate the potential adverse effects of an accidental oversupply of Na2SO4 in the diets of laying hens.Four hundred and fifty 21-week-old Hy-Line White layers were randomly assigned to 5 treatments with 6 replicates.The birds were fed diets supplemented with 0(control),0.3%,0.6%,1.5%,and 3.0%Na2SO4 for 8 weeks.Laying perfor-mance,egg quality parameters,clinical blood parameters,histopathology,intestinal barrier func-tions,and intestinal microflora composition were measured.No clinical signs of intoxication or mortality were observed during the experimental period.The results of this study showed that the optimal levels of Na2SO4(0.3%to 0.6%)significantly improved the laying rates,average daily egg mass,and eggshell quality of hens compared to the control(P<0.05).However,3.0%Na2SO4 produced negative effects on laying performance,eggshell quality,blood biochemistry,and partic-ularly on liver and kidney pathology,and intestinal morphology and barrier functions compared with the controls.Although minor changes were observed in clinical blood parameters of hens receiving 1.5%Na2SO4,these were not considered to be of toxicological significance due to the absence of any organ pathological changes in hens.In conclusion,our results indicated that a Na2SO4 concentration of 1.5%was non-deleterious to laying hens after a daily administration for 56 d,namely that dietary supplementation of up to 5 times the maximum recommended dose is safely tolerated by laying hens.