Effect of Nanoencapsulated Alginate-Synbiotic on Gut Microflora Balance, Immunity, and Growth Performance of Growing Rabbits

Abstract

A synbiotic comprising Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast (SCY) and Moringa oleifera leaf extract (MOLE) has been encapsulated using nanotechnology. This duo is used as a dietary supplement for growing rabbits. Physicochemical analyses, in vitro antimicrobial activity, and gastrointestinal system evaluation were used to evaluate the quality of the nanofabricated synbiotic. The in vivo study was conducted using 40-day-old male growing rabbits (n = 16 rabbits/group) to evaluate the effect of the nanofabricated synbiotic on the health and growth performance of examined rabbits. Rabbits were equally allocated into four groups; (a) NCS, which received a basal diet supplemented with a noncapsulated 11 × 1012 CFU SCY + 0.15 g MOLE/kg diet, (b) LCS: those receiving a nanoencapsulated 5.5 × 1012 CFU SCY + 0.075 g MOLE/kg diet, (c) HCS: those receiving an 11 × 1012 CFU SCY + 0.15 g MOLE/kg diet, and (d) CON: those receiving a basal diet without treatment (control). The treatments continued from day 40 to day 89 of age. During the experimental period, growth performance variables, including body weight (BW), feed consumption, BW gain, and feed conversion ratio were recorded weekly. Blood samples were collected on day 40 of age and immediately before the start of the treatments to confirm the homogeneity of rabbits among groups. On day 89 of age, blood samples, intestinal, and cecal samples were individually collected from eight randomly selected rabbits. The size and polydispersity index of the nanofabricated synbiotic were 51.38 nm and 0.177, respectively. Results revealed that the encapsulation process significantly improved yeast survival through the gastrointestinal tract, specifically in stomach acidic conditions, and significantly increased in vitro inhibitory activities against tested pathogens. Furthermore, treatments had no negative effects on hematobiochemical variables but significantly improved levels of blood plasma, total protein, and insulin-like growth factor-l. Compared to the CON, NCS, and LCS treatments, the HCS treatment increased the amount of intestinal and cecal yeast cells (p < 0.05) and Lactobacillus bacteria (p < 0.05) and decreased number of Salmonella (p < 0.05) and Coliform (p = 0.08) bacteria. Likewise, both LCS and HCS significantly improved the small intestine and cecum lengths compared to CON and NCS. The HCS treatment also significantly improved BW gain and feed conversion compared to CON treatment, whereas the NCS and LCS treatments showed intermediate values. Conclusively, the nanoencapsulation process improved the biological efficiency of the innovative synbiotic used in this study. A high dose of encapsulated synbiotic balanced the gut microflora, resulting in the growth of rabbits during the fattening period.

A Comprehensive Review of Moringa oleifera Bioactive Compounds—Cytotoxicity Evaluation and Their Encapsulation

“…Recently, nanoencapsulation has been used as a strategy for overcoming the drawbacks of traditional drug delivery methods, such as low bioavailability, adverse reactions, and unpleasant organoleptic qualities [ 79 , 91 , 92 , 93 , 94 ].…”

“…Moreover, a symbiotic containing Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast (11 × 10 12 CFU) and M. oleifera leaf extract was developed for growing rabbits using the nanoencapsulation technique. Alginate (1% w/v ) and CaCl 2 (0.5% w/v ) successfully encapsulated the supplement (51.38 nm) with encapsulation efficiencies of 57.55% [ 91 ].…”

Bioactive compounds enrichment in rabbit doe’s diet pre-and during pregnancy improved productive and reproductive performance and cost-effectiveness under hot climates

“…Also,Chinwe et al, (2021) showed that rabbit diet supplementation with synbiotics signi cantly increased nal body weight (FBW) and daily body weight gain compared to control diets. A similar study byNesrein et al, (2021) recorded that growing rabbits fed with alginate-synbiotic led to signi cantly higher BWG and FCR than control. Heat stress imposes several physiological, nutritional, and behavioral disturbances on animals.…”

Dietary Supplementation with a Combination of Fibrolytic Enzymes and Probiotics Improves Digestibility, Growth Performance, Blood Metabolites, and Economics of Fattening Lambs

“…Several studies have investigated the role of Bacillus ( B. ), which has the characteristics of a probiotic in enhancing the microbial balance, digestive processes, and immunity of the hosts [ 6 , 7 , 8 ]. A study conducted on the effect of B. subtilis on ruminants demonstrated that B. subtilis altered the rumen fermentation pattern of calves and increased the growth performance of animals [ 7 ].…”

“…), which has the characteristics of a probiotic in enhancing the microbial balance, digestive processes, and immunity of the hosts [ 6 , 7 , 8 ]. A study conducted on the effect of B. subtilis on ruminants demonstrated that B. subtilis altered the rumen fermentation pattern of calves and increased the growth performance of animals [ 7 ]. Supplementation with yeast also has several benefits in ruminant nutrition, including enhancing nutrient digestibility, increasing volatile fatty acids, reducing ammonia concentration, and stabilizing rumen pH [ 9 ].…”