Enzymes as Feed Additive to Aid in Responses Against Eimeria Species in Coccidia-Vaccinated Broilers Fed Corn-Soybean Meal Diets with Different Protein Levels

Abstract

This research aimed to evaluate the effects of adding a combination of exogenous enzymes to starter diets varying in protein content and fed to broilers vaccinated at day of hatch with live oocysts and then challenged with mixed Eimeria spp. Five hundred four 1-d-old male Cobb-500 chickens were distributed in 72 cages. The design consisted of 12 treatments. Three anticoccidial control programs [ionophore (IO), coccidian vaccine (COV), and coccidia-vaccine + enzymes (COV + EC)] were evaluated under 3 CP levels (19, 21, and 23%), and 3 unmedicated-uninfected (UU) negative controls were included for each one of the protein levels. All chickens except those in unmedicated-uninfected negative controls were infected at 17 d of age with a mixed oral inoculum of Eimeria acervulina, Eimeria maxima, and Eimeria tenella. Live performance, lesion scores, oocyst counts, and samples for gut microflora profiles were evaluated 7 d postinfection. Ileal digestibility of amino acids (IDAA) was determined 8 d postinfection. Microbial communities (MC) were analyzed by G + C%, microbial numbers were counted by flow cytometry, and IgA concentrations were measured by ELISA. The lowest CP diets had poorer (P < or = 0.001) BW gain and feed conversion ratio in the preinfection period. Coccidia-vaccinated broilers had lower performance than the ones fed ionophore diets during pre- and postchallenge periods. Intestinal lesion scores were affected (P < or = 0.05) by anticoccidial control programs, but responses changed according to gut section. Feed additives or vaccination had no effect (P > or = 0.05) on IDAA, and diets with 23% CP had the lowest (P < or = 0.001) IDAA. Coccidial infection had no effect on MC numbers in the ileum but reduced MC numbers in ceca and suppressed ileal IgA production. The COV + EC treatment modulated MC during mixed coccidiosis infection but did not significantly improve chicken performance. Results indicated that feed enzymes may be used to modulate the gut microflora of cocci-vaccinated broiler chickens.

Effect of coccidia challenge and natural betaine supplementation on performance, nutrient utilization, and intestinal lesion scores of broiler chickens fed suboptimal level of dietary methionine

“…In a more severe challenge, Parker et al. ( 2007 ) reported reductions in average FI and WG of all treatments infected with mixed Eimeria spp. by 21 and 45%, respectively, whereas the FCR was increased by 43% compared with the average of the unchallenged control.…”

Utility of Feed Enzymes and Yeast Derivatives in Ameliorating Deleterious Effects of Coccidiosis on Intestinal Health and Function in Broiler Chickens

“…Dietary supplementation with a protease reduced negative impact of a coccidiosis infection (E. acervulina, E. maxima, and E. tenella) on body weight gain in broilers but had no effects on lesions and oocyst shedding (98). In contrast, Parker et al (99) showed that an enzyme blend (amylase, protease, and xylanase) fed to coccidiosis vaccinated broiler chicks had no effect on ileal nutrient digestibility or growth performance but reduced lesion scores. E. acervulina and E. maxima associated intestinal damage have been linked with adverse effects on bone health mainly because they infect duodenum and upper jejunum, the major sites of minerals absorption (85,100,101).…”

“…Feed enzymes can modulate GIT ecology reducing undigested nutrients and production of oligosaccharides with potential prebiotic effects (Figure 2) (24). For example, enzyme blend (amylase, protease, and xylanase) supplementation supported gut ecology that reduced intestinal lesion scores particularly in the ceca linked to altered microbial profiles in coccidia-vaccinated broilers (99). The authors interpreted that, although the enzyme blend did not influence ileal digestibility of nutrients it altered the characteristics of digesta such that ceca microbiota communities were altered.…”

Effect of Phytogenic Feed Additives in Soybean Meal on &lt;italic&gt;In vitro&lt;/italic&gt; Swine Fermentation for Odor Reduction and Bacterial Community Comparison

“…Thus, identifying the suitable FA and nutrient supply which influences beneficial microbial community is essential (Hume et al, 2006; Parker et al, 2007). Denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis-polymerase chain reaction (DGGE-PCR) technique is one of DNA fingerprinting techniques which can be used to describe the microbial diversity of a variety of ecosystems in intestinal microbiota (Muyzer et al, 1993; Felske et al, 1998; Muyzer and Smalla, 1998; Konstantinov et al, 2003; Zhu et al, 2003).…”