Efficacy of Savory Essential Oil Utilization in Conventional and Encapsulated Forms on Performance of Broiler Chickens

Abstract

This survey aimed to evaluate the effects of dietary supplementation of different forms of savory essential oil (SEO) on growth performance, intestinal morphology and microbial population in broiler chickens. A total of 360 one-day-old male broilers were randomly allocated to 6 dietary treatment groups with 5 replicates per treatment and 12 birds per pen. The experiment consisted of a 2×3 factorial arrangement including two different forms [encapsulated SEO (ESEO) and nonencapsulated SEO (NSEO)] in three levels (0, 150, and 300 mg/kg diet) of SEO. Growth performance, jejunal morphology and intestine microbial population were examined. Our results revealed that feed intake was not influenced by the dietary treatments in different experimental periods. As well as, the experimental diets did not influence body weight gain (BWG) and feed conversion ratio (FCR) during the starter period. However, at the grower, finisher, and also whole rearing periods, broilers which received 150 mg/kg SEO had significantly higher BWG and lower FCR compared to the birds fed the control diet. The final body weight (FBW) was also higher in chickens fed with diet supplemented with 150 mg/kg SEO in comparison to the others. The results also revealed that 150 mg/ kg SEO, significantly increased the concentration of Lactobacillus and decreased the intensity of coliforms in the ileal digesta in comparison to the control diet. Furthermore, villus height was significantly lower in birds fed the control diet than in the birds that consumed different levels of SEO. Eventually, the findings of this experiment revealed that dietary supplementation of SEO, especially at 150 mg/kg level, was effective in raising the populations of beneficial microorganisms in the gastrointestinal tract as well as improving intestinal morphology and growth performance of broilers.

Chitosan/Calcium–Alginate Encapsulated Flaxseed Oil on Dairy Cattle Diet: In Vitro Fermentation and Fatty Acid Biohydrogenation

“…In studies on encapsulated plant application in livestock production, it has been emphasized that encapsulation application can be applied as a good strategy to increase the potency of herbal components that can be used instead of synthetic antioxidants and AGF [ 30 , 31 ]. Like the antibacterial activity in the studies, it was determined that the antioxidant activity increased as a result of chitosan encapsulation [ 32 ].…”