Abstract
Purslane is a widespread wild vegetable with both medicinal and edible properties. It is highly appreciated for its high nutritional value and is also considered as a high-quality feed resource for livestock and poultry. In this study, Sanhuang broilers were used to investigate the effect of feeding purslane diets on the growth performance in broilers and their gut microbiota. A total of 48 birds with good growth and uniform weight were selected and randomly allocated to four treatment groups A (control), B, C and D. Dietary treatments were fed with basal diet without purslane and diets containing 1%, 2% and 3% purslane. The 16S rDNA was amplified by PCR and sequenced using the Illumina HiSeq platform to analyze the composition and diversity of gut microbiota in the four sets of samples. The results showed that dietary inclusion of 2% and 3% purslane could significantly improve the growth performance and reduce the feed conversion ratio. Microbial diversity analysis indicated that the composition of gut microbiota of Sanhuang broilers mainly included Gallibacterium, Bacteroides and Escherichia-Shigella, etc. As the content of purslane was increased, the abundance of Lactobacillus increased significantly, and Escherichia-Shigella decreased. LEfSe analysis revealed that Bacteroides_caecigallinarum, Lachnospiraceae, Lactobacillales and Firmicutes had significant differences compared with the control group. PICRUSt analysis revealed bacteria mainly enriched in carbohydrate metabolism pathway due to the additon of purslane in the diet. These results suggest that the addition of purslane to feed could increase the abundance of Lactobacillus in intestine, modulate the environment of gut microbiota and promote the metabolism of carbohydrates to improve its growth performance. This study indicates that the effect of purslane on the growth-promoting performance of broilers might depend on its modulation on gut microbiota, so as to provide a certain scientific basis for the application of purslane in the feed industry.
Highlights
Sanhuang broiler chicken, is known as triple-yellow chicken, is one of the most famous breeds of poultry as well as native chickens in China, named for its yellow beak, yellow feather and yellow claws
This study aims to investigate the effect of purslane on the growth performance and gut microbiota in broiler chickens, as well as the role of these intestinal bacteria in regulating the growth and metabolism
There was no significant difference in the daily food intake between the four groups (P > 0.05), but the average daily weight gain of groups C and D with 2 % and 3 % purslane was significantly higher than that of the control group A (P < 0.05), which increased by 1.44 g and
Summary
Is known as triple-yellow chicken, is one of the most famous breeds of poultry as well as native chickens in China, named for its yellow beak, yellow feather and yellow claws. The meat of Sanhuang chicken is tender, delicious and nutritious, and contains high protein and amino acid content, but low. Purslane is a nutritious vegetable with high antioxidant properties. It is rich in nutrients such as glucose and malic acid, and is recognized as the richest source of α-linolenic acid, essential omega-3 fatty acids, ascorbic acid, α-tocopherol and β-carotene (Uddin et al 2014). Purslane contains bioactive compounds like flavonoids, alkaloids, polysaccharides, etc., which have a variety of pharmacological effects, such as antibacterial, antioxidant, hypoglycemic, hypolipidemic, neuroprotection and so on (Rahimi et al 2019; Zhou et al 2015). The edible and medicinal value of purslane is of momentous significance to the growth and development of organisms, and it has shown great nutritional potential and has very far-reaching application prospects in the future
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