Silver and zinc nanoparticles in animal nutrition – a review

Abstract

The use of metal nanoparticles as supplements of animal diets does not always bring unambiguous results. There are many reports in the literature about the multifaceted effects of this type of supplementation on the animal organism. Therefore, the aim of the paper is to present the current knowledge of the possible application of nanometal forms in animal nutrition and its potential benefits and threats. The positive effect of nanoparticles used as feed additives has most frequently been reflected in an increase in body weight, higher average daily gain, or improvement of the FCR value. In some cases, however, the effect of nanoparticle addition to diets was indiscernible. The potent antibacterial activity of nanoparticles, especially against Gram-negative bacteria and Gram-positive bacteria, is regarded as a positive effect. In turn, the probability of their toxicity is a potential risk in application thereof. Supplementation of diets with nanometals has been accompanied by pathological changes in animal tissues, primarily in the pancreas, kidney, liver, rumen, abomasum, small intestine, adrenal glands, and brain. Additionally, at the the cellular level, nanoparticles were found to induce toxicity, inflammatory excitation, and cell death. Oral administration of nanoparticles induced a risk of malfunction of the nervous system and even impairment of cognitive processes in animals. The increasing knowledge of the possible toxic effects of nanoparticles on the animal organism suggests caution in their use in animal production and necessitates further precise investigations in this area.

The effect of metal-containing nanoparticles on the health, performance and production of livestock animals and poultry

“…The significance of zinc in animal feeding, its bioavailability (absorption) in the body, properties of Zn nanoparticles, their effect on biological systems/animal performance (growth, milk production), rumen fermentation, immunity, reproduction, antibacterial activity, and toxicity were described in detail in the reviews of Swain et al ( 2016 ), Bąkowski et al ( 2018 ), Yusof et al ( 2019 ), Amlan and Lalhriatpuii ( 2020 ), and Abdelnour et al ( 2021 ). Zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnONPs) have good prospects for the use as one of the new antibiotics (Yusof et al 2019 ; Ouyang et al 2021 ) and anticoccidial alternatives (El-Maddawy et al 2022 ).…”

“…Nanoparticles in animal nutrition are explored for growth performance, feed utilization and health status (Abd El-Hack et al 2017; Amlan and Lalhriatpuii 2020 ; Dawood et al 2021 ). Nano-forms of micro- and macroelements most frequently increase the body weight, average daily gain, and improve the feed conversion ratio (FCR) (Bąkowski et al 2018 ; Yusof et al 2019 ). NPs are used to cover the animal's demand for elements, improve their productivity, ameliorate microbial profile and immune status, as well as reduce the risk of diseases.…”

“…Nanoparticles are known for their antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, antiprotozoal, antioxidative properties, etc. Silver, copper, selenium, and zinc nanoparticles can constitute alternative health and growth promoting additives to antibiotics (Sawosz et al 2007 ; Pineda et al 2012 ; Bąkowski et al 2018 ; Kumar and Bhattacharya 2019 ; Yusof et al 2019 ; Nabi et al 2020 ; Sheiha et al 2020 ; Hidayat et al 2021 ; Morsy et al 2021 ; Ouyang et al 2021 ; El-Maddawy et al 2022 ). Nano-copper and nano-zinc can also increase the activity of the superoxide dismutase enzyme, which constitutes a very important antioxidant defense against oxidative stress (Gonzales-Eguia et al 2009 ; Refaie et al 2015 ; Hidayat et al 2021 ).…”

“…However, it should be remembered that small size of nanoparticles might affect their toxicity by increasing the cellular uptake and translocation in the animal’s body (Gatoo et al 2014 ; Scott et al 2016 ). At the cellular level, nanoparticles can cause inflammation or even cell death (Bąkowski et al 2018 ). Supplementation of nanoparticles to the animal diet can induce pathological changes in animal tissues, like liver, pancreas, kidney, small intestine, adrenal glands and brain (Bąkowski et al 2018 ).…”

“…At the cellular level, nanoparticles can cause inflammation or even cell death (Bąkowski et al 2018 ). Supplementation of nanoparticles to the animal diet can induce pathological changes in animal tissues, like liver, pancreas, kidney, small intestine, adrenal glands and brain (Bąkowski et al 2018 ). Therefore, detailed research is still required to confirm the safety of application of metal-containing nanoparticles in animal nutrition, avoiding any harm to livestock, the environment, and human beings (Scott et al 2018 ).…”