Silicon supplementation affects mineral metabolism but not bone density or strength in male broilers

Abstract

Because leg injuries produce welfare concerns and impact production for broilers, numerous interventions have been suggested as potential solutions. One mineral which may affect bone quality is silicon. The objective of this study was to determine if supplementing bioavailable silicon could affect bone morphology, mineralization, and strength without negatively influencing welfare and meat quality. Male broilers were raised from d 1 after hatching until 42 d of age and randomly assigned to treatment groups for silicon supplementation in water: Control (no supplement, C; n = 125), Normal (0.011 ml supplement/kg bodyweight, N; n = 125) and High (0.063 ml supplement/kg bodyweight, H; n = 125). Toe damage, footpad dermatitis, hock burn, and keel blisters were assessed on d 42. Blood samples were collected from wing veins for serum osteocalcin, pyridinoline cross-links, and mineral analysis. Clinical QCT scans and analysis were conducted immediately before four-point bending tests of tibias. Texture analysis was performed on cooked fillets. Silicon supplementation tended to increase daily water consumption in N and H as compared to C (P = 0.07). Footpad dermatitis and hock burn scores were higher in H than in N or C (P < 0.05 for both comparisons). Supplementation altered serum minerals (P < 0.001), but bone density, morphology, and strength measures were similar among groups. The highest level of supplementation in the current study on a kg bodyweight basis was above recommended intakes but below previous amounts demonstrating silicon’s positive influence on bone, indicating that previously suggested minimum thresholds need to be reevaluated. Factors such as growth rate and mechanical loading likely play a greater role in developing bone quality than trying to supplement on top of good basic nutrition alone.

Silicon Supplementation for Bone Health: An Umbrella Review Attempting to Translate from Animals to Humans

“…Sums of standardized Si intakes in studies demonstrating positive effects on bone and/or mineral metabolism did rank higher in the Mann-Whitney U test than standardized Si intakes in studies showing no effects on bone or mineral metabolism. The difference between these two groups indicates that there may be a level above essentiality at which supplemented Si positively influences these outcomes, though some studies have reported no greater outcomes with increased supplementation [15,26,40,43,45,55]. Previous experiments that have achieved improvements in bone or cartilage quality in adult animals [5,15,27,48,49,[53][54][55] fed Si in large amounts, which, when expressed on a per kg BW basis at 18 to 462 mg Si/kg BW, is difficult to translate into use with large animals.…”

“…If a human weighing 65 kg consumed the mean standardized Si intake from Si treatments, this would be 7.8 g Si, eclipsing the recommendation from the literature for this mineral as well as the daily recommended allowance for macrominerals like calcium [62]. Supplementing at these amounts would likely alter the metabolism of other crucial minerals [24,27,43,55] and would likely be difficult, if not impossible, to achieve in humans.…”

Analyzing the impact of a combination of zinc oxide and phytase on the performance and alkaline phosphate activity in local chickens

“…The blood serum analysis showed significant differences in ALP concentrations between male and female chickens due to various causal factors (Table 2). Proper nutrition, growing rate, and mechanical loading greatly influence bone quality development [41]. Male chickens tend to grow faster and heavier than females, which can lead to femoral degeneration in young birds [42].…”

CALCIUM: PHYSIOLOGICAL ROLE, SOURCES AND DOSES IN DIETS OF COMMERCIAL POULTRY (review)

“…Для фермерских хозяйств определяющим экономическим фактором служит качество яичной скорлупы. При средней производительности небольшой птицефабрики 300 млн яиц в год около 24 млн яиц выводятся из коммерческого оборота из-за мягкой скорлупы или ее разлома (6)(7)(8).…”