The effect of red dragon fruit (Hylocereus polyrhizus) peel meal on internal organs, ileal coliform, and growth performances in broiler chickens

Abstract

The study evaluated the effect of feeding red dragon fruit (Hylocereus polyrhizus) peel meal on internal organs, ileal coliform counts, and growth performances in broiler chicken. A total of 96 birds of unsexed one-day-old broiler (Ross strain) were randomly divided into four dietary treatments and six replications with four birds each. The dietary treatments were basal diet as a control diet (DPM0), basal diet added with 0.5% red dragon fruit peel meal (DPM1), and 1% red dragon fruit peel meal (DPM2), and 1.5% red dragon fruit peel meal (DPM3). The cecum and carcass percentage in the broiler was significantly enhanced (p<0.05). At the same time, the coliform total in the ileum and abdominal fat were significantly decreased (p<0.05) with the increasing level of feeding dragon fruit peel meal. The difference in other internal organs' feed intake and body weight gain during the treatments were insignificant (p>0.05) after five weeks of feeding. In conclusion, the red dragon fruit peel meal effectively improves growth performance and gut health by increasing carcass percentage and decreasing abdominal fat production and ileal coliform count in broiler chickens.

In vitro fermentation end-products and rumen microbiome as influenced by microencapsulated phytonutrient pellets (LEDRAGON) supplementation

“…In this study, higher gas production of (|a|) was observed in the MiEn-LEDRAGON supplementation group (1 to 4% DM). This increase could be attributed to the elevated levels of oligosaccharides in dragon fruit peel, particularly fructooligosaccharides (FOS), known as a soluble dietary fraction 47 – 49 , which was extracted in MiEn-LEDRAGON. The soluble fraction facilitates binding with rumen microbes, contributing to a higher production of gas 31 , 43 , 46 .…”

The effect of using fruit peel on broiler growth and health

“…Several studies have been conducted to investigate the potential of various fruit peels as functional feeds and feed additives to improve broiler chicken health (Table -3) [10, 22-24, 37, 39, 42-46, 49, 54, 57, 58]. Various fruit peels have been shown to improve the population and diversity of microbes in the digestive tract [10,42], immune system [37,39,43,49], antioxidant status [23,24], physiological conditions [39,44], and the function of vital organs, such as the liver in broiler chickens [22].…”

“…Several active ingredients found in fruit peels have been associated with the ability of fruit peels to increase the population and diversity of microbes in broiler digestive tracts [10,42]. Some antimicrobial compounds found in fruit peels are responsible for the increased microbial population and diversity in broiler intestines [12].…”