Effects of dietary natural zeolite including plant extract on growth performance and intestinal histology in Aigamo ducks

Abstract

1. To investigate the growth performance and histological intestinal alterations of Aigamo ducks fed on dietary combinations of zeolite, plant extract and vermiculite (ZEM, 14-d-old Aigamo ducks were divided into 4 groups, with 3 replicates of 3 male and 3 female ducks. They were fed ad libitum on a basal commercial duck mash diet with 0, 0.1, 0.5 and 1.0 g/kg dietary ZEM for 63 d. 2. Body weight gain tended to be higher for the 0.1 and 0.5 g/kg ZEM groups than for the control group at 9 weeks. 3. In light microscopic observation, most values of the intestinal villus height, villus area, cell area and cell mitosis numbers were higher in the ZEM group than those of the control in all intestinal segments, and the duodenal villus height, cell area and cell mitosis of the 0.5 g/kg ZEM group, as well as jejunal cell mitosis in the 0.1 g/kg ZEM group, increased (P < 0.05). In the scanning electron microscope results, all ZEM groups showed protuberant epithelial cells and cell clusters on the villus apical surface of the duodenum and ileum. In the jejunum, villus gyri were frequently observed in the 0.1 g/kg ZEM group. These histological intestinal alterations suggest that intestinal villi and epithelial cellular functions might have been activated. 4. From the present results, dietary ZEM showed hypertrophied functions of intestinal villi and epithelial cells at the duodenum and ileum, and the 0.1 and 0.5 g/kg levels improved body weight gain. These suggest that the ZEM can be supplemented until a level of 1.0 g/kg.

Effect of Feeding Transcarpathian Zeolite on Gastrointestinal Morphology and Function in Broiler Chickens

“…In our experiments, supplementation with zeolite has had significant (p>0.05) effects on productive parameters compared to the control (data unpublished). Zeolite has a crystal structure (Coombs et al, 1997, Mumpton, 1999 and might induce hypertrophied intestinal villi, resulting in improved body weight gain (Incharoen et al, 2010b, Khambualai et al, 2009. The gut morphology was affected in the sense of increased villus height and villus to crypt depth which suggests that the health of the intestine was improved by the zeolite.…”

“…The number of the villus is directly related to the shape, height and surface area of the villus (Maneewan & Yamauchi, 2005). Some authors reported that there exists a correlation between the villus structure (villus height, crypt depth, villus area, cell area) and nutrient absorption, in different regions of small intestine (Wu et al, 2013a, Wu et al, 2013b, Khambualai et al, 2009. In our experiments a tendency towards increased villus height, villus perimeter and villus section area was observed in duodenum, mid jejunum and ileum throughout the intestinal parts of broilers fed 2% zeolite compared to the control.…”

“…a feed additive (Pavelic et al, 2001, Olver, 1997, Martin-Kleiner et al, 2001, Khambualai et al, 2009. Numerous studies have proved that zeolite added as a dietary supplement to the rations of cattle, pigs and poultry results frequently in beneficial weight gains and lower susceptibility to disease showing regular digestions as well as an increase in appetite of animals because zeolites slow down the passage rate of digesta through the digestive tract and control the release of nutrients in the small intestine (Papaioannou et al, 2002, Ural et al, 2013, Valpotic et al, 2016.…”

“…Due to their biologically neutral structure and their unusual properties, zeolites have been applied to veterinary medicine, agriculture, industry, sanitation and environmental protection (Pavelic et al, 2001). Zeolite can actively adsorb ammonia, carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulfide and mercaptans, remove toxins, absorb aflatoxin and create changes in immunological responses (Khambualai et al, 2009). Microelements present in zeolite, can enhance mineral metabolism and increase the content of minerals in the tissues.…”

The relationship between intestinal histology and function as shown by compensatory enlargement of remnant villi after midgut resection in chickens

“…Lower villus height (Khambualai et al, 2009) and narrower cell area (Incharoen and Yamauchi, 2009) were observed in the ileum compared with the jejunum.…”