Supplementation of broiler diets with retinol acetate, ß‐carotene or canthaxanthin: Effect on vitamin status and oxidative status of broilersin vivoand on meat stability

Abstract

Supplementation of broiler diets with retinol accetate, ß-carotene or canthaxanthin: effect on vitamin status and oxidative status of broilers in vivo and on meat stability.The oxidative status of live chickens and of the chicken meat was evaluated for 5 groups of broilers fed a diet optimized with respect to all nutrients and energy content and rich in unsaturated fatty acids from rapeseed and soybean oil. The six diets varied in dietary content of ß-carotene (5.1 or 10.2 mg kg -1 diet), canthaxanthin (2.0 mg kg -1 diet) or retinol (8400 or 16800 IU kg -1 diet). Analyses of blood plasma taken from the live chicken showed no differences in their oxidative status, as regards haemolysis, creatin kinase (CK), glutamic-oxaloacetic transaminase (GOT) and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px). At slaughter α-tocopherol in plasma (P< 0.01) and liver (P<0.05) decreased with increasing dietary retinol or ß-carotene levels, whereas analysis of breast and thigh muscles did not show any change. Dietary canthaxanthin caused a decrease in the concentration of retinol in breast muscles (P 0.01), whereas γ-tocopherol content in thigh muscles (P< 0.001) increased with increasing dietary retinol and ß-carotene content. Most of the ß-carotene was converted to retinol at the intestinal mucosa during absorption, and ß-carotene was detected only in small amounts in the liver. However, canthaxanthin and natural lutein from the feed were both readily absorbed and deposited unchanged in the tissues. The oxidative stability during chill (1, 7 and 14 days) and freezer storage (5 and 10 months) of raw muscles measured as TBARS values showed no significant differences related to the dietary treatment.

Effect of a minor vitamin A deficiency on the course of infection with Ascaridia galli (Schrank, 1788) and the resistance of chickens

“…However, both Ackert et al (1931) and Dubinský et al (1975) utilized natural or semi-synthetic diets which were more deficient in vitamin A than those utilized in this study; and which caused pathognomonic symptoms of vitamin A deficiency or mortality in infected chickens. Further evidence of the importance of vitamin A in host resistance to A. galli was produced by Leutskaya et al (1993) who found that supplementation of diet with orally administered vitamin A (2,500 to 5,000 IU per bird) reduced A. galli's establishment rate by 40 to 78 % in adult chickens fed balanced diets. Higher doses (10,000 to 50,000 IU vitamin A per bird) yielded worm burdens in which 70 to 100 % of the female worms were stunted and immature with a reduced male-female ratio.…”

“…Vitamin A analysis Vitamin A in liver was analysed according to the procedure described by Jensen et al (1998). To liver samples (approximately 3 g) 96 % v/v ethanol was added as twice the amount (w/w).…”

Effect of short-term versus long-term grassland management and seasonal variation in organic and conventional dairy farming on the composition of bulk tank milk

“…The FA C17:0 was used as external standard. Fat-soluble vitamins were extracted and analyzed by HPLC as described by Jensen and Nielsen (1996) and Jensen et al (1998). A PerkinElmer HS-5-Silica column (4.0 × 125 mm; Waltham, MA) was used for analyses of α-tocopherol and retinol and a Supelco amino column (4.6 × 250 mm; Sigma-Aldrich) was used for analysis of β-carotene.…”

Scientific opinion on the safety and efficacy of canthaxanthin as a feed additive for poultry and for ornamental birds and ornamental fish

“…Jensen et al (1998) supplemented chickens diets with 2 mg canthaxanthin/kg (from day 11 to day 42) and found no effects on fatty acid composition of thigh and breast muscle or on the oxidative stability (measured by thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARS)) of these tissues at slaughter, after chill storage for 14 days or frozen storage for 10 months. Similarly, Woodall et al (1996) did not observe an effect on the oxidative stability of breast muscle after supplementing diets with 100 mg/kg canthaxanthin.…”