Abstract
Simple SummarySilybum marianum is a well-known herb in terms of its pharmacological activities, and it is used as both a medicament and a dietary supplement (phytobiotics). Milk thistle seeds contain a mixture of flavonoids known as silymarin, which consists of silybin, isosilybin, silychristine, and silydianin. Until now, there has been no evidence of monitoring the digestibility of silymarin complex in horses. The aim of the research was to evaluate digestibility of silymarin complex and the effect of nutrient digestibility in horses. Different daily feed doses of milk thistle expeller (0 g, 100 g, 200 g, 400 g, 700 g) were administered to five mares kept under the same conditions and at the same feed rations. We monitored the digestibility of silymarin, digestible energy, crude protein, crude fat, crude fiber, nitrogen-free extract, crude ash, calcium, phosphorus, and plasma profile. Statistically significant differences (p ≤ 0.05) were found between daily doses in digestibilities of flavonolignans and nutrients. Our findings showed the digestibility of flavonolignans increased with the daily dose and then stagnated with the dose of milk thistle seed cakes at 700 g/day. Milk thistle seeds contain a mixture of flavonoids known as silymarin, which consists of silybin, isosilybin, silychristine, and silydianin. Until now, there has been no evidence of monitoring the digestibility of silymarin complex in horses. The aim of the research was to evaluate the digestibility of silymarin complex and the effect of nutrient digestibility in horses. Different daily feed doses (FD) of milk thistle expeller (0 g, 100 g, 200 g, 400 g, 700 g) were administered to five mares kept under the same conditions and at the same feed rations. Digestibility of silymarin complex was monitored by HPLC-UV. Digestible energy (DE), crude protein, crude fat, crude fiber, nitrogen-free extract (NFE), crude ash, calcium (Ca), and phosphorus (P) were determined according ISO/IEC 17025:2017. The biochemical profile of blood plasma (total protein, albumin, alanine transaminase (ALT), aspartate transaminase (AST), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT), bilirubin, total cholesterol, HDL cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, triacyl glyceride (TAG), non-esterified fatty acid (NEFA), creatine kinase (CK), creatinine, urea, glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), total antioxidant status (TAS), glucose, calcium, and inorganic phosphate) was investigated. Moreover, the flavonolignans of the silymarin complex in plasma were detected. Statistically significant differences (p ≤ 0.05) were found between daily doses of milk thistle expellers in digestibilities. Our findings showed the digestibility of flavonolignans increased with the daily dose and then stagnated with the dose of milk thistle seed cakes at 700 g/day.
Highlights
The feeding of milk thistle (Silybum marianum) to horses has recently become a popular phenomenon because it is a well-known herb for its pharmacological activities and is used as both a medicament and a dietary supplement
Milk thistle seeds contain a mixture of flavonoids known as silymarin, which consists of silybin, isosilybin, silychristine, and silydianin
Milk thistle seed cakes contain more crude fat, crude protein, and crude fiber, as well as less nitrogen-free extract (NFE) when compared to barley (Table 2)
Summary
The feeding of milk thistle (Silybum marianum) to horses has recently become a popular phenomenon because it is a well-known herb for its pharmacological activities and is used as both a medicament and a dietary supplement (phytobiotics). The estimated positive effects can be clarified on the basis of its antioxidant properties due to the phenolic nature of its flavonolignans [2]. The mixture of flavonolignans known as silymarin complex represents about 1.5–3% of the drug dry matter and consists of silybin or silibinin (50–60%), isosilybin (≈15%), silychristin (≈20%), and silydianin (≈10%) and other compounds (silimonin, isosilychristin, isosilybin) [4]. The most attention has been given to silybin; other components are often ignored. This effect results in reproducibility as well as the exact composition of silymarin complex, which is often unknown and may vary depending on plant growth conditions, processing, etc. Together with other substances such as betaine, apigenin, silybonol, and specific proteins, it can contribute to the positive effects in addition to silymarin [6]
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