Supplementing growing quail diets with silymarin and curcumin to improve productive performance and antioxidant status and alleviate aflatoxin b1 adverse effects during the summer season

Abstract

The current experiment was carried out to test the ability of supplementing growing quail diet with silymarin and curcumin as natural antioxidants to improve antioxidant status of growing Japanese quail and alleviate aflatoxin B1 adverse effects during the summer season. Three levels each of curcumin and silymarin (zero, 250mg and 500mg/kg diet) were combined to compose 9 experimental diets and the diet that contains zero levels from each natural antioxidant acted as a control basal diet. Three hundred and sixty-one-day-old Japanese quail chicks were distributed randomly into nine experimental groups where each group contained 4 replicates with 10 chicks per each. Each experimental group fed only one diet for five weeks where growth performance parameters were recorded. Carcass characteristics, plasma proteins, liver enzymes and some antioxidant parameters were measured. The following results were obtained. Significant improvement was detected in final body weight and entire body weight gain for quail fed the diet supplemented with 250 mg /kg diet from both curcumin and silymarin compared with quail fed the control diet. Final body weight and entire body weight gain gained more improvement with increasing curcumin and silymarin up to 500mg/kg diet. Curcumin and silymarin supplementation didn't affect significantly the feed intake, feed conversion carcass parameters and plasma proteins fraction. Blood antioxidant parameters were improved by curcumin and silymarin supplementation. The level of aflatoxin B1 in liver and muscles were significantly decreased by curcumin and silymarin supplementation. From the current experimental results, we can recommend supplementing diets with curcumin and silymarin to improve growth performance and alleviate harms effects of free radicals and aflatoxin B1.

Restoring Activity of Milk Thistle (Silybum marianum L.) on Serum Biochemical Parameters, Oxidative Status, Immunity, and Performance in Poultry and Other Animal Species, Poisoned by Mycotoxins: A Review

“…In quails, a dose of 1000-2000 mg/kg/diet of SIL (analytical composition unknown) plus AFs (2.2 mg/kg/diet, as AFB 1 : 68.19%, AFB 2 : 4.57%, AFG 1 : 24.96%, AFG 2 : 2.28%), showing an increase in BWG correlated with a good FCR, with a minor rate of mortality compared to the poisoned group, and control group [63]. Similarly, Youssef and colleagues [64] evidenced an improvement, increasing supplementation levels of SIL to 500 mg/kg/diet plus AFB 1 (19 ppb/kg/diet), in BW and BWG but not in FCR. Even in quails, the addition of 500 g/ton/diet of SIL in a diet contaminated with AFs (1500 µg/kg/diet, as AFB 1 : 84.64%; AFB 2 : 4.28%; AFG 1 : 11.07%), for 60 days of treatment, demonstrated that SIL was not able to mitigate the negative effects of AFs.…”

“…In comparison, they decreased significantly in groups treated with lycopene (100 mg/kg/diet) plus SIL (SIL 80%, analytical composition not reported) at a dose of 600 mg/kg-BW, as well as creatinine, with an associated increase of serum total protein and albumin. These latter parameters were altered in quail treated with AFB 1 at a dose of 1500 µg/kg/diet [62], but not when fed with 250-500 mg/kg/diet of SIL [64]. No changes were observed in biochemical parameters in quail treated for 60 days with beta-glucans (1 kg/ton/diet) or SIL (500 g/ton/diet) plus AFB 1 [62].…”

“…The SIL treatment exhibited the largest antioxidation activity compared with the other three hepatoprotective agents tested in their study, glycyrrhizin, L-arginine, and glucorolactone [51]. At the same dose of OTA, in vivo study on intoxicated quails treated with SIL (500 mg/kg/diet), showed the highest total antioxidant capacity (TAOC), and GSH-Px and recorded the significantly lowest MDA values [64].…”

“…Evidence for this was also observed by Feshanghchi and colleagues [55], where MT seed powder (10 g/kg/diet: silichristin 2851 mg/kg, silybin B 8864 mg/kg, silymarin 100 mg/kg) significantly decreased AST and ALT activity. A significant decrease in AST activity was detected in growing quail fed with 500 mg/kg/diet of SIL, compared to the control, with no effects on ALT activity [64]. The effects of MT were investigated using the whole plant, compared to the effect of the seed administration, specifically on the influences of ALT enzyme activity.…”

Substitution of Synthetic Vitamins, Prebiotics and Antibiotics by Plant Feed Additives in Layer Diet of Quails Reared Under Chronic Heat Stress.

“…Silymarin is an antimicrobial, an anticancer and has a protect effects on cardiovascular, neuro system and skin (Wang et al, 2020). Silymarin has an antioxidant activity when inserted in quail diets and improve growth performance (Youssef et al, 2022). Similarly, adding curcumin to quail diet improved feed conversion and enhanced egg production when quail exposed to thermal stress, besides egg quality improved (Marchiori, et al, 2019).…”