Effects of oregano essential oil as an antibiotic growth promoter alternative on growth performance, antioxidant status, and intestinal health of broilers

Abstract

This experiment was conducted to assess the comparative effects of dietary antibiotics and oregano essential oil ( OEO ) addition on growth performance, antioxidant status and intestinal health of broilers. A total of 384 one-day-old broilers were randomly allocated to 4 treatments with 6 replicates of 16 broilers each. The 4 treatments were: an antibiotic-free control diet (control), control + 20 mg/kg colistin sulfate and 20 mg/kg virginiamycin (antibiotics), control + 200 mg/kg natural oregano essential oil ( NOEO ), and control + 200 mg/kg synthetic oregano essential oil ( SOEO ). The experiment lasted for 42 d. Results showed that birds fed with OEO had greater ( P < 0.05) average daily gain ( ADG ) and lower ( P < 0.05) feed conversion ratio ( FCR ) than those fed with control diet during d 1 to 21. Besides, birds fed with NOEO had the greatest ( P < 0.05) ADG in the four groups during d 22 to 42. The serum oxidative stress parameters showed that OEO improved ( P < 0.05) the activities of glutathione peroxidase ( GSH-Px ), superoxide dismutase ( SOD ) and glutathione reductase ( GR ) of birds on day 21 and the activity of total antioxidant capacity ( T-AOC ) of birds on d 42. Relative to control, NOEO increased ( P < 0.05) the activity of T-AOC in jejunum and decreased ( P < 0.05) the level of malondialdehyde ( MDA ) in serum and jejunum. Moreover, OEO supplementation increased ( P < 0.05) the concentrations of sIgA in duodenum and jejunum, Lactobacillus and total anaerobes in cecum, as well as activities of trypsin, chymotrypsin, lipase and amylase in duodenum, but restrained ( P < 0.05) the amount of Escherichia coli . The NOEO supplementation increased ( P < 0.05) total anaerobes of broilers on d 42 and the villus height to crypt depth ratio ( VH/CD ) of ileum. These results suggest that OEO improved antioxidant status and intestinal health of broilers which contributed to the growth performance improvement of broilers. Dietary OEO supplementation can be a promising alternative to antibiotic growth promoters for improving poultry production.

Effects of essential oil/palygorskite composite on performance, egg quality, plasma biochemistry, oxidation status, immune response and intestinal morphology of laying hens

“…In our present study, the inclusion of EO-PGS in the layer's diet led an increase in liver and spleen T-SOD and GSH-PX, as well as plasma and liver T-AOC contents. Zhang et al (2021) also demonstrated that the inclusion of oregano essential oil in the birds’ diet caused an increase in serum GSH-Px and SOD, as well as serum T-AOC contents, which is consistent with our finding. As well, we found EO-PGS addition decreased the level of MDA (the most important indicator of lipid peroxidation) in plasma, liver, and spleen.…”

Non-Antibiotics Strategies to Control Salmonella Infection in Poultry

“…This involves the use of both herbs (non-woody and non-persistent plants) and spices (intensive smell and taste herbs) [ 63 ]. Most commonly used plants as phytobiotics include alfalfa [ 64 ], bergamot [ 65 ], peppermint [ 14 ], black cumin [ 66 ], chili [ 67 ], clove [ 68 ], oregano [ 69 ], cinnamon [ 70 ], and garlic [ 71 ], among others. It has been demonstrated that phytobiotics could enhance feed intake, stimulate the secretion of endogenous enzymes, reduce pathogens proliferation, improve the absorption of the nutrients, increase the carcass quality and muscle yield in broilers, and stimulate the immune system, among other effects [ 72 ].…”

Effect of Bacillus species–fermented products and essential oils on growth performance, gut morphology, cecal short-chain fatty acid levels, and microbiota community in broilers

“…EOs are effective in preventing lipid oxidation and promoting antioxidant activity in broilers ( Adaszyńska-Skwirzyńska and Szczerbińska, 2017 ; Mohebodini et al, 2021 ). Supplementation with EOs can improve growth performance, reduce coccidiosis, and alleviate necrotic enteritis in broilers ( Giannenas et al, 2003 ; Khattak et al, 2014 ; Zhang et al, 2021 ; Pham et al, 2022 ). A recent meta-analysis also shows that all type of EOs have positive effects on body weight, average daily gain, feed conversion ratio, digestibility, and cecal microbiota in broilers ( Irawan et al, 2021 ).…”