Simple SummaryThe application of in-feed antibiotic growth promoters was banned in many countries due to their negative effects, and several kinds of feed additives were widely investigated as antibiotic alternatives, in which natural plant-derived products received much attention due to their environmentally friendly properties and numerous biological activities. Ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe), a widely used herbal medicine and spice, was proven to have potential as an antibiotic alternative in poultry feed, but there is little literature on the efficacy of ginger extract (GE), which has concentrated bioactive compounds with high bioavailability. Our results showed that dietary GE supplementation increased egg weight, improved egg quality, and reduced the yolk cholesterol content of laying hens. Decreased serum activities of alanine transaminase and aspartate transaminase and improved antioxidant status were observed in the GE group. Our study demonstrated the potential benefits of GE in laying hens.AbstractThe objective of this study was to investigate the effects of ginger extract (GE) as a dietary supplement for laying hens. A total of 40-week-old 288 Hyline Brown laying hens were randomly divided into two groups with six replicates, and fed a basal diet with or without 100 g/t GE for eight weeks. Dietary GE supplementation increased egg weight, albumin height, and Haugh unit of eggs, and decreased yolk cholesterol content and activities of alanine transaminase and aspartate transaminase in serum at eight weeks. Moreover, GE resulted in higher total superoxide dismutase (T-SOD) activity and lower malondialdehyde (MDA) content in yolk at four and eight weeks and in serum. It was concluded that GE was effective in increasing egg weight and improving the egg quality and antioxidant status of laying hens.

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This study was conducted to compare the efficacy of diet supplemented with non-microencapsulated lutein (NL) and microencapsulated lutein (ML) in laying hens. A total of 270 Hy-line Brown laying hens (54 weeks old) were allocated to three groups with six replicates of 15 hens and were adapted to a wheat-soybean meal basal diet for two weeks. Next, the control birds were fed the basal diet, and the test birds were fed the basal diet supplemented with 600 mg/kg NL (12 mg/kg available lutein) or 90.1 mg/kg ML (10 mg/kg available lutein) for 35 days. Supplementation of lutein did not affect the productive performance of laying hens, but improved ( P <0.05) the yolk color and red/green value (a*), with eggs from the ML group displaying improved color and a* values from the 15 th day of the experimental period. The blue/yellow value (b*) for the yolk showed an increase ( P <0.05) through both NL and ML supplements. The yolk color of fried and boiled eggs and a* value of the yolk in fried eggs were improved ( P <0.05) only through ML supplemented diet. Both NL and ML supplements resulted in lower ( P <0.05) lightness and higher ( P <0.05) a* values of yolk in boiled eggs, as well as higher ( P <0.05) b* values in fried and boiled eggs. Yolk lutein content in fresh, fried, and boiled eggs was increased ( P <0.05) in NL and ML groups with the latter being higher. In conclusion, ML improved yolk pigmentation and lutein retention in laying hens better than NL.