No abstract

Previously, fermentation has been associated with methods that improve the nutritional value of unconventional feed ingredients for broilers. In recent decades, the fermentation process has been employed to produce functional feeds that have the potential to improve broiler gastrointestinal tract microecology, health and production performance. Some of the functional ingredients found in fermented feed include lactic acid bacteria (LAB), lactic acid and other organic acids, and appear to play major roles in determining the beneficial effects of fermented feed on broiler gut health and performance. Unlike the pig, the available literature on broiler fermented feed is still rather limited. This review describes recent advances in the use of fermented feed (on the basis of conventional and unconventional feed ingredients) in broilers. Similarly, this review also shows that additional research is necessary to exploit fermented feed as a viable food source in broiler nutrition.

heat-related stress has become a serious problem in poultry industry along with the global temperatures rise. heat stress causes detrimental effects on physiology, immunology and microbiology resulting in abnormalities and impaired performances of birds. several nutritional strategies have been conducted to counteract the detrimental effects of heat stress in poultry, including dietary supplementation of probiotics. this strategy has been proposed to ameliorate the intestinal ecosystem, physiological conditions and immune system, leading to the improved performance and health of birds subjected to heat stress. This review presents the potential benefits of probiotics against heat stress in poultry from the viewpoint of intestinal microbial ecology, morphology and structure, physiological conditions, immune system and production performances. the possible mechanisms through which probiotics may give beneficial impacts on heat-stressed birds are also discussed along with the data reporting the possible drawbacks of using probiotics in heat-stressed poultry.

The present study investigated the effect of feeding bovine colostrum (BC) to piglets in comparison with feeding a milk replacer (MR) and conventional rearing by the sow on the intestinal immune system and number of enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) colonising the intestinal tissue. Piglets (23-d-old) were allocated to one of the following four groups: (1) killed at the beginning of the experiment (Base); (2) separated from the sow and fed BC (BC-fed); (3) separated from the sow and fed a MR (MR-fed); (4) kept with the sow (Sow-Milk). Blood was sampled on days 1 and 8, and faecal samples were collected on days 1, 3, 5 and 8. On day 8, piglets were killed and gastrointestinal digesta and intestinal segments were collected. The frequency of diarrhoea was found to be higher (P≤ 0·019) in MR-fed piglets than in BC-fed and Sow-Milk piglets. Piglets from the MR-fed group had the lowest lactic acid bacteria:haemolytic E. coli ratio (P treat= 0·064) in the faeces. The number of E. coli colonising the intestinal tissue was higher (P< 0·001) in piglets from the MR-fed group than in those from the BC-fed and Sow-Milk groups. Piglets from the Sow-Milk group had a higher (P= 0·020) mucosal IgG concentration than those from the MR-fed group, but did not exhibit any difference when compared with piglets from the Base and BC-fed groups. Piglets from the BC-fed group exhibited a reduced (P≤ 0·037) expression level of Toll-like receptor-4 in the intestinal mucosa when compared with those from the MR-fed and Sow-Milk groups. The expression level of IL-2 was higher (P≤ 0·051) in piglets from the MR-fed group than in those from the other treatment groups. In conclusion, feeding BC rather than MR to the piglets reduced the colonisation of intestine by ETEC and modulated the intestinal immune system, whereas no differences were observed in piglets fed BC and conventionally reared by the sows.

The study aimed to evaluate the probiotic properties, antioxidant activity and fermentative capacity of Acremonium charticola and Rhizopus oryzae isolated from the Indonesian fermented dried cassava, with particular application on poultry. A. charticola inhibited the growth of Escherichia coli and Aspergillus flavus. A. charticola and R. oryzae grew in potato dextrose agar (PDA) adjusted to pH 3 and 8 or in PDA supplemented with bile salt up to 0.8%. After soaking for 8 hr, the survival rate of A. charticola in the simulated gastric juice (pH 2) and bile solutions (2% bile salt) was lower than that of R. oryzae. A. charticola and R. oryzae exhibited strong antioxidant activities. Compared to unfermented cassava pulp (control), the fibre content of cassava pulp tended to be lower after fermentation with A. charticola for 14 days. The populations of A. charticola and R. oryzae were significantly higher in fermented cassava pulp than in unfermented one. Coliform was higher in cassava pulp fermented with R. oryzae or A. charticola + R. oryzae compared to control after 7 days of fermentation, however, the bacteria were not different between A. charticola-fermented cassava pulp and control. Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) were higher in A. charticola- and R. oryzae-fermented cassava pulp than those in control, however, no difference of LAB was observed between A. charticola + R. oryzae-fermented cassava pulp and control. In conclusion, A. charticola exhibited antibacterial, antifungal and antioxidant activity, gastrointestinal persistence and fermentative capacity that may be beneficial for poultry industry.

The antioxidant capacity and antioxidant constituents of two filamentous fungi (Acremonium charticola and Rhizopus oryzae) isolated from the Indonesian fermented dried cassava (gathot) were evaluated in the present study. The antioxidant capacity of the fungal crude extracts was assessed based on the 2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethyl-benzthiazolin-6-sulfonicacid) (ABTS) method. Total phenolics were determined based on the Folin-Ciocalteu method, while the flavonoids content in the fungal extracts was determined by the spectrophotometric method with aluminum chloride. Total tannins were estimated by the Folin-Denis method. The ABTS+ radical scavenging activity was higher (p < 0.01) in A. charticola compared to that in R. oryzae and ascorbic acid (as a control). A higher (p < 0.01) content of total phenolics was detected in A. charticola than that in R. oryzae. Total flavonoids were higher (p < 0.01) in R. oryzae as compared with that in A. charticola. The fungus A. charticola had a higher (p < 0.01) level of total tannins than R. oryzae. In conclusion, both filamentous fungi isolated from the Indonesian fermented dried cassava exhibited antioxidant potentials as indicated by their capabilities to scavenge ABTS+. A. charticola had a higher antioxidant capacity than R. oryzae. The antioxidant capacity of A. charticola was attributed mainly to its phenolics and tannins contents.

BackgroundThe processes of weaning and exposure to pathogenic bacteria induce stress responses, which may alter the metabolism. In this study, we investigated the changes in plasma metabolites and immune responses in piglets in response to the stress induced by weaning and Escherichia coli challenge.ResultsFecal dry matter decreased (P = 0.003) and nearly half (44.4%) the piglets developed diarrhea on day 2 and 3 postweaning. The concentration of plasma immunoglobulin A was higher (P < 0.001) on day 11 postweaning than on day 0 or 4 postweaning. The levels of white blood cells increased continuously (P < 0.001) from day 0 to day 11 postweaning. Differences in the percentages of neutrophils (P = 0.029) and lymphocytes (P = 0.022) were seen, but the neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio did not differ in the period after weaning. A clear separation of the metabolomic profile data for day 0 and day 4 postweaning was observed with a principal components analysis (PCA) scores plot, and the data for day 11 were located between those for day 0 and day 4 postweaning. The plasma levels of proline, taurine, and carnitine were higher, whereas those of betaine, creatine, L-arginine and acetylcarnitine were lower on day 4 postweaning than on day 0. Levels of lysophosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylcholine were either higher or lower after weaning, depending on the chain lengths or characters of these metabolites.ConclusionsOur results show a clear separation in the plasma metabolomic profiles of piglets that corresponded to the fecal responses to stress on the piglets induced by weaning or exposure to a pathogen (E. coli). These plasma metabolite profiles suggest that the challenges induced proinflammatory responses in the piglets, resulting in postweaning diarrhea, which was associated with higher concentrations of IgA in the plasma.

Cassava pulp is an energy-rich by-product of the tapioca industry, and is known as a good media for growing filamentous fungi. It may therefore be not only an alternative to maize in poultry diets, but also a carrier for beneficial fungi. This study aimed to investigate the effects of dietary inclusion of the fungus Acremonium charticola (grown in A. charticola-fermented cassava pulp) (AC-FCP), with or without antibiotic growth promoters (AGPs), on growth performance, nutrient digestibility, and meat quality of broiler chicks. A total of 192 broiler chicks were assigned to one of four dietary treatments, including a control diet (maizesoybean-meal-based diet), control diet + AGPs (neomycin) (0.0003% of diet), AC-FCP diet (containing 16% of AC-FCP), and AC-FCP + AGPs. There was a tendency towards lower feed costs per kilogram live bodyweight (BW) gain in AC-FCP and AC-FCP + AGPs than in the control and control + AGPs birds. The birds fed the AC-FCP diet had greater spleen relative weight than the control and AC-FCP + AGPs birds. The birds fed diets containing AC-FCP and AC-FCP + AGPs had heavier ileum and caecum, and tended to have smaller livers than the control and control + AGPs birds. The 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) percentage inhibition values were lowest and highest in the AC-FCP and control birds, respectively. The breast meat of the control birds had lower crude protein content than that of other experimental groups. In conclusion, dietary inclusion of AC-FCP reduced the feed cost per kilogram live weight gain of broiler chicks. The fungus A. charticola (grown in AC-FCP) seems to play an important role in increasing the relative weight of spleen, ileum and caecum, alleviating oxidative stress, and increasing the protein content of breast muscle of broiler chicks.