Effects of Dietary Supplemental L-Carnitine and Ascorbic Acid on Performance, Carcass Composition and Plasma L-Carnitine Concentration of Broiler Chicks Reared Under Different Temperature

Abstract

The present study was initiated to determine whether dietary supplemental L-carnitine and ascorbic acid affect growth performance, carcass yield and composition, abdominal fat and plasma L-carnitine concentration of broiler chicks reared under normal and high temperature. During the experiment, two temperature regimes were employed in two experimental rooms, which were identical but different in environmental temperature. The regimes were thermoneutral (20-22 degrees C for 24 h) or recycling hot (34-36 degrees C for 8 h and 20-22 degrees C for 16 h). One-day-old broiler chicks (ROSS) were used in the experiment. A 2 x 2 x 2 factorial arrangement was employed with two levels (0 and 50 mg/kg) of supplemental L-carnitine and two levels (0 or 500 mg/kg) of supplemental ascorbic acid in drinking water under thermoneutral or high temperature regimes. Body weight gain was affected by high temperature. However, body weight gain was significantly improved in animals receiving supplemental L-carnitine, ascorbic acid or L-carnitine + ascorbic acid compared to animals receiving unsupplemented diet under high temperature. On the other hand, supplemental L-carnitine or L-carnitine + ascorbic acid reduced body weight gain under thermoneutral condition. Supplemental ascorbic acid significantly improved feed conversion efficiency, the improvement was relatively greater under high temperature. The L-carnitine content in the plasma was higher in the groups receiving supplemental L-carnitine and ascorbic acid under high temperature, while broilers fed supplemental L-carnitine and ascorbic acid had a decreased level of plasma L-carnitine concentration under normal temperature. It is concluded that dietary supplemental L-carnitine or L-carnitine + ascorbic acid may have positive effects on body weight gain, carcass weight under high temperature conditions.

Performance, carcass characteristics and meat physico-chemical properties of broiler chickens fed graded levels of supplemental ascorbic acid

“…This observation conformed to that of Kutlu (2001) and Sahin, et al (2003) fat of birds on 135ppm supplemental AA and the control (unsupplemented). Other studies (Fletcher and Cason, 1991;Celik andOzturkcan, 2003 andKonca et al, 2009) also confirmed that AA supplementation had no effect on abdominal fat pad yield. Table 4.…”

Effect of L-carnitine supplementation on fattening and carcass parameters of broiler chickens

“…Similar results were obtained by Daskirian and Teeter (2001) and Zhang et al (2010) that the carcass yield of which increased as a result of L-carnitine supplementation, but the differences were not significant. Different results were recorded by Celik and Ozturkcan (2003), Celik et al (2003) and Kidd et al (2009) who observed that supplementation of L-carnitine had no effect on carcass yield.…”

Effect of Dietary L-Carnitine Supplementation on Productive Performance and Carcass Quality of Local Duck Breeds in Summer Season

“…These results may be due to L-carnitine may acts to decrease the total activities of glucose-6 phosphate dehydrogenize, malic dehydrogenize, iso-citrate dehydrogenize and lipoprotein lipase and total activities of carnitine palmitoyltransferase-I in breast muscles (Xu et al, 2003). Or, it accelerate lipid flux into oxidative metabolism, and consequently reduce the body lipid accumulation (Shuenn et al, 2012).These results are contrary with those obtained by Celik and Ozturkcan (2003) reported that the supplementation of L-carnitine to the broiler diet did not significantly affect the dry matter, CP, and ether extract components of breast or thigh meat. Sarica, et al, (2005) recorded that dietary Lcarnitine supplementation did not significantly affect the dry matter or moisture, CP, and ether extract contents of the total edible meat (breast plus high meat) of 35-dold Japanese quail.…”