The efficiency of probiotics administrated via different routes and doses in enhancing production performance, meat quality, gut morphology, and microbial profile of broiler chickens
Date
2021-12-20
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
MDPI
Abstract
To study the efficiency of Bacillus spp. probiotics administered via different routes and
doses, a 6-week grow-out trial was conducted using a total of 378 day-old mixed-sex ROSS308 broiler
chickens in a completely randomized block design. Six experimental diets included probiotics added
at two different inclusion rates into the feed (250 g/ton; PRO250, or 500 g/ton; PRO500), or in the
drinking water (25 g/L; PRO-WS), or as a feed synbiotic (250 g probiotic + 250 g/ton prebiotic; SYN),
compared to a negative (NC; without additives) and positive control (PC; with antibiotics) diets. The
PRO-WS enhanced feed intake (p < 0.05) and tended to improve average daily gain and final body
weight (p = 0.14). Broiler gut morphology in the duodenum including the villus height (p = 0.04),
villus width (p = 0.05) and crypt depth (p = 0.02) were improved by PRO500. Firmicutes was the most
abundant phylum, followed by Bacteroidetes. Streptococcaceae, Lachnoospiraceae, Peptostreptococcaceae,
Ruminococcaceae, and Erysipe-lotrichaceae were the top five most abundant families. Antibiotic inclusion
in PC reduced microbial beta-diversity and increased similarity compared to probiotic inclusion
(p = 0.05). Probiotic inclusion reduced the relative abundance of Bacteroides fragilis, which is a
commonly isolated pathogen and is considered as a marker for antimicrobial resistance. Overall,
probiotic supplementation via feed or water may potentially improve the production performance of
the broiler chickens, and water-soluble probiotics are potentially more effective. Probiotics, especially
when added to water, suggest a promising feed additive to support gut microbial maturation and
diversity, and may reduce resistant bacteria in broiler chickens. However, it is suggested that the best
route for the administration of probiotics be further examined under commercial conditions to find
the most effective and practical application method that yields the most consistent results.
Description
CITATION: Soumeh, E. A. et al. 2021. The efficiency of probiotics administrated via different routes and doses in enhancing production performance, meat quality, gut morphology, and microbial profile of broiler chickens. Animals, 11:3607, doi:10.3390/ani11123607.
The original publication is available at https://www.mdpi.com
The original publication is available at https://www.mdpi.com
Keywords
Broilers (Chickens), Broilers (Chickens) -- Feeding and feeds, Broilers (Chickens) -- Productivity, Broilers (Chickens) -- Quality
Citation
Soumeh, E. A. et al. 2021. The efficiency of probiotics administrated via different routes and doses in enhancing production performance, meat quality, gut morphology, and microbial profile of broiler chickens. Animals, 11:3607, doi:10.3390/ani11123607.