Effect of Sources and Levels of Zinc on the Tissue Mineral Concentration and Carcass Quality of Broilers

Abstract

A study was conducted to determine the effect of sources and levels of zinc on tissue zinc concentration and the carcass quality of broilers. A total of 6,000 1-day-old unsexed broiler chicks were allotted randomly to four floor pens with 1,500 birds per pen. A corn-wheat-soybean meal basal diet (Control) was formulated, and 40 ppm inorganic zinc (40 IZ), 40 ppm organic zinc (40 OZ), and 80 ppm organic zinc (80 OZ) were added to the basal diet to form four dietary treatments. During the 4-wk experimental period, feed and water were provided ad libitum. At the end of the feeding trial, five birds from each pen were randomly selected as five replicates, slaughtered and carcass evaluation was performed. Results showed that zinc supplementations have no effect on zinc content in thigh muscle but a significant increase was found in skins from broilers in 80 OZ (P50:05). The epidermis thickness of tibia and back skin were not affected by the zinc supplementations. However, significant increases of tibia and back skin dermis thickness were found (P50:05) by zinc supplementation and organic zinc was more effective than inorganic zinc in this respect (P50:05). The collagen contents of breast and thigh muscle were not affected by dietary zinc supplementation, but organic zinc increased the collagen contents in the back skin of broilers (P50:05). Shear force values of back skin and breast muscle were not affected by zinc supplementation. It is concluded that dietary organic zinc is more effective in increasing the skin zinc concentration, and improving skin quality of broilers than inorganic zinc.

Influence of Various Levels of Organic Zinc on the Live Performance, Meat Quality Attributes, and Sensory Properties of Broiler Chickens

“…1). Another study conducted in our laboratory has shown that dietary OZ supplementation significantly increased the tibia and back skin dermis thickness of broiler chickens (Salim et al, 2010). The authors also reported that the epidermis of tibia and back skin were not affected by the zinc supplementation, which is not in agreement with the thigh skin epidermis data of the present experiment.…”

“…It has been reported that the addition of zinc proteinate as OZ to the diets of broilers could increase BW, feed intake, feed efficiency (Ao et al, 2009), and carcass quality (Salim et al, 2010). In fact, organic minerals chelated to small peptides have much greater bioavailability through increased selective transport of peptides at the gut level (Webb et al, 2005) and reduced excretion through droppings (Bao et al, 2007).…”

“…In fact, organic minerals chelated to small peptides have much greater bioavailability through increased selective transport of peptides at the gut level (Webb et al, 2005) and reduced excretion through droppings (Bao et al, 2007). An experiment conducted in our laboratory has shown that dietary OZ was more effective than inorganic zinc in the improvement of skin zinc concentration and skin quality of broiler chickens (Salim et al, 2010). Rossi et al (2007) reported that a reduction in skin tearing was observed by the addition of OZ in the broiler diets which would improve carcass appearance.…”

Effect of Organic Zinc on the Skin Characteristics of Broilers and the Expression Level of Skin Proteins

“…Skin tearing results in downgrading and economic losses to the broiler industry (2). The degree of skin tearing is affected by growing condition, dietary factors, and skin collagen content.…”

“…Zinc is involved in various metabolic processes of animals and is an essential mineral for normal growth and carcass quality of broiler chickens (1,2). In poultry, zinc plays an important role in keratin and collagen biosynthesis (3).…”