Dietary supplementation of Ganoderma lucidum improves fatty liver hemorrhagic syndrome in laying hens

Abstract

Fatty liver hemorrhagic syndrome (FLHS) is a common metabolic disease in birds. FLHS have highly incidence rate in cage system. The syndrome can be characterized by abnormal lipid accumulation in liver which trigger inflammation and hemorrhage syndrome. Moreover, FLHS decrease egg production severely and have huge impact to the poultry industry. Additionally, FLHS is similar diagnosis to non‐alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). NAFLD is a spectrum of liver disorders and characterized by excessive hepatic fat accumulation. Ganoderma lucidum (G. lucidum) is a medicinal mushroom. G. lucidum is rich in bioactive components comprises and has hepatoprotective activity. Dipeptidyl‐peptidase 4 (DPP4) is a type II transmembrane protein and strongly associated with FLHS and NAFLD. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of feeding diets containing different ratio of G. lucidum on FLHS and the association of plasma DPP4 in hens and to use LMH cell to study the role of DPP4 in FLHS. Thirty 7‐week‐old, ISA hens were allotted to 5 treatments with 6 hens per replicate and fed high cholesterol low choline (CLC), CLC + 0.25% G. lucidum, CLC + 0.5% G. lucidum, CLC + 0.75% G. lucidum, and CLC + 1% G. lucidum, respectively, for six weeks. Body weight and plasma were recorded every three week. At the end of experiment, livers were photographed, excised, weighed, and scored for liver hemorrhages. The results showed that CLC + 1% G. lucidum body weight was significantly higher than CLC + 0.25% G. lucidum and treatment of G. lucidum decreased the level of triglyceride in the plasma. Oleic acid induced DPP4 mRNA expression in LMH cells, suggesting that there is an association between lipid and DPP4 expression in the liver cell. In conclusion, G. lucidum could be a dietary additive or medicine for reducing fatty liver in laying hens.