No abstract

The present experiment was conducted to determine effects of herbs (Artemisia capillaris and Acanthopanax senticosus) in natural and fermented forms on growth performance, nutrient digestibility, blood parameters, meat quality and fatty acid composition in growing-finishing pigs. A total of 96 pigs [(Landrace  Yorkshire)  Duroc] with an average initial body weight (BW) of 25.46 ± 1.07 kg were randomly allotted into one of three dietary treatments. The dietary treatments included: (1) CON (basal diet), (2) NH (basal diet þ0.05% natural herbs) and (3) FH (basal diet þ0.05% fermented herbs). Pigs fed NH and FH diets had greater final BW than those fed CON diet (p < .05). During the whole period of the experiment, pigs fed NH and FH diets had a greater average daily gain than those fed CON diet, and the average daily feed intake in FH dietary treatment was greater than CON dietary treatment (p < .05). The FH dietary treatment had improved apparent total tract digestibility (ATTD) of dry matter compared with CON and NH dietary treatments (p < .05). The ATTD of nitrogen in NH and FH dietary treatments was greater than that in CON dietary treatment (p < .05). Moreover, fermented herbs decreased saturated fatty acids (SFA) but increased polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) and PUFA to SFA ratio in Longissimus dorsi muscle. In conclusion, natural or fermented herbs improved growth performance and nutrient digestibility in growing-finishing pigs. Additionally, fermented herbs supplementation positively changed fatty acid profiles in Longissimus dorsi muscle.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of the B. subtilis RX7 and B. subtilis C14 on the growth performance, blood profiles, nutrient retention, and caecal microflora of broiler chickens. A total of 288, 1-d-old Ross 308 male broilers were assigned to one of four dietary treatment groups for 35 days; the negative control (NC; basal diet with no antibiotic or B. subtilis), positive control (PC; NC + 40 ppm avilamycin), T1 (NC + 0.1% B. subtilis RX7 1.0×109 cfu/g), and T2 (NC + 0.1% B. subtilis C14 1.0×109 cfu/ g). B. subtilis supplementation led to significantly higher weight gain than that in the NC. The serum haptoglobin concentration was lower in the Bacillus groups than in the NC and PC groups. The energy retention of broilers fed B. subtilis was significantly higher than that of the NC and PC broilers. The numbers of caecal Lactobacillus or Salmonella in the Bacillus groups were higher and lower, respectively, than those in the numbers in the NC and PC. The results showed that B. subtilis RX7 and C14 increased the weight gain, energy retention, and caecal Lactobacillus numbers and decreased serum haptoglobin levels and caecal Salmonella numbers in broiler chickens.

This experiment was conducted to evaluate effects of replacing 'part' of soybean meal (SBM) with 4% rapeseed meal (RSM) or 4% canola meal (CM) on growth performance, nutrient digestibility, blood characteristics, faecal noxious gas emission, and meat quality in finishing pigs. A total of 120 crossbred finishing pigs [(Yorkshire × Landrace)× Duroc] with an average body weight of 50.71 ± 1.97 kg were randomly divided into one of three dietary treatments according to their sex and BW (10 replicate pens with 2 barrows and 2 gilts per pen). Dietary treatments were as follows: (1) CON, a corn-SBMbased diet; (2) CM4, diet containing 4% CM originated from Korea; (3) RSM4, diet containing 4% RSM originated from India. Replacing SBM with 4% RSM or 4% CM had no effects on average daily gain, average daily feed intake, gain to feed ratio, concentrations of blood urea nitrogen and creatinine, faecal ammonia, hydrogen sulphide, and total mercaptans emission, meat quality, and apparent total tract digestibility of dry matter, nitrogen, and gross energy. In conclusion, the inclusion of 4% of RSM or CM in finishing pig diets had no negative effects on growth performance, nutrients digestibility, faecal noxious gas emission, blood characteristics, and meat quality. ARTICLE HISTORY

The effects of dietary omega-6 (n-6) to omega-3 (n-3) polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) ratios on growth performance, digestibility, blood lipid profiles, fecal microbial counts, and meat quality in finishing pigs were examined by using linseed and fish oil. A total of 140 crossbred finishing pigs [(Landrace × Yorkshire) × Duroc] were used in a 10 wk trial. Pigs were blocked based on body weight (BW) and sex and randomly allotted to four dietary treatments formulated to have n-6/n-3 ratios of 5/1, 10/1, 15/1, and 17/1 (control). Throughout the experiment, BW, average daily gain, and average daily feed intake were significantly (P < 0.05) increased with a decreased ratio of n-6/n-3 PUFA. Energy digestibility and fecal Lactobacillus count showed a linear (P < 0.05) increase in week 10. The high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and blood triglyceride concentrations increased (P < 0.1) during week 10. However, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol was reduced (P < 0.05) linearly during week 5 and week 10 with a reduction in dietary n-6/n-3 ratio. This study provides a basis for future research on altering n-6/n-3 ratio by using linseed oil and refined fish oil in finishing pigs.