Effects of dietary Achyranthes japonica extract supplementation on the growth performance, total tract digestibility, cecal microflora, excreta noxious gas emission, and meat quality of broiler chickens

Abstract

The present study was investigated the effects of dietary Achyranthes japonica extract ( AJE ) supplementation on the growth performance, total tract digestibility, cecal microflora, excreta noxious gas emission, breast meat quality, and organ weight in broiler chickens. In total, 640 Ross × Ross male broiler chickens (1-day-old) were randomly distributed into 4 dietary treatments with 10 replicate cages (16 birds/replicate) per treatment group for 5 wk. The dietary treatments included a control basal diet without AJE, and diets with 0.025, 0.05, or 0.1% AJE. Body weight gain, feed intake, and feed conversion improved linearly with the supplementation of AJE over the experimental period (days 1 to 35) ( P < 0.05). Dietary AJE supplementation caused a significant increase in the apparent total tract digestibility of dry matter and nitrogen (linear, P < 0.05). The cecal Lactobacillus , E. coli , and Salmonella counts were linearly affected with increasing dietary AJE supplementation ( P < 0.05). With increasing levels of AJE, excreta ammonia gas concentration showed a linear decrease ( P < 0.05). The breast muscle weight linearly increased, along with a decrease in the abdominal fat weight, in treatment groups fed with AJE ( P < 0.05). These results indicate that dietary addition with increasing AJE linearly improved growth performance, total tract digestibility, cecal microflora, excreta ammonia gas emission, and abdominal fat weight in broiler chickens.

Effects of Achyranthes bidentata polysaccharides on performance, immunity, antioxidant capacity, and meat quality in Pekin ducks

“…In the current study, ABP decreased the relative weight of abdominal fat but increased breast meat, which was in agreement with our recent study in broilers ( Park and Kim, 2020 ). The reason for the decreased relative weight of abdominal fat may be because of the lipolytic effect of ABP ( Krishnakumari and Priya, 2006 ; Latha et al., 2011 ).…”

“…The findings of present study showed that 0.02 to 0.04% ABP improved BWG and feed efficiency in the grower period and the whole experiment, which was consistent with the results of our recent study ( Park and Kim, 2020 ). The supplementation of ABP (0.025–0.1%) increased BWG during day 1 to 7, day 22 to 25, and day 1 to 35 as well as feed efficiency during day 1 to 7, day 8 to 21, and day 1 to 35 linearly in broilers ( Park and Kim, 2020 ). The improvement in BWG and F/G may be because of the increased nutrient digestibility.…”

“…The improvement in BWG and F/G may be because of the increased nutrient digestibility. Park and Kim (2020) found that the digestibility of dry matter and nitrogen was increased linearly with the increasing dietary ABP supplementation in broilers. Besides, several studies suggest that herb extracts may stimulate the bile secretion, increase the activities of digestive enzymes ( Brenesa and Roura, 2010 ), and ameliorate gut intestinal morphology ( Khalaji et al., 2011 ; Liu et al., 2018 ).…”

“…Several researches have been conducted to evaluate its effects on growth performance, antioxidant activities, gut health, and immune function in broilers ( Qiu et al., 2007 ; Liu et al., 2018 ), weaning pigs ( Guo et al., 2008 ; Kang et al., 2010 ; Chen et al., 2011 , 2014 ), and rats ( Zhang and Lin, 2012 ), which indicated positive effects, especially on immunity. Our recent study also demonstrated that ABP increased growth performance and total tract digestibility, regulated cecal microflora, and decreased excreta ammonia gas emission and abdominal fat weight in broilers ( Park and Kim, 2020 ). To the best of our knowledge, no information about the effect of ABP on ducks was available.…”

“…The experiment received prior approval from the Animal Protocol Review Committee of Dankook University (Cheonan, Choongnam, South Korea). The ABP used in our study was obtained from a commercial company (Synergen Inc., Bucheon, Korea) and produced according to our previous study ( Park and Kim, 2020 ) with small modifications. A. bidentata roots from China were washed 3 times with clean water and then grinded with a mill (IKAM20; IKA, Staufen, Germany).…”