Abstract
Calcium (Ca) most significantly influences the bioavailability of plant-derived phosphorus due to its formation of phytate-Ca chelates. A study was designed to examine the interactive effects of graded total Ca-to-total P ratios (Ca:P) and phytase on the standardized ileal digestibility (SID) of P and bone characteristics in diets formulated with soybean meal as the sole source of P. Male broiler chickens were fed 6 semi-purified diets prepared in a 2 × 3 factorial treatment arrangement with 2 levels of phytase (0 or 1,000 FYT/kg of diet) and 3 levels of Ca:P (1.1, 2.0, or 2.8) for 72 hours from d 18 to 21 post hatching. Birds were assigned to the experimental diets in a randomized complete block design with 8 replicate cages per treatment. Increasing the Ca:P linearly decreased (P < 0.05) the SID of P from 54 to 40%, whereas the supplementation of phytase improved the SID of P from 26 to 67%. The supplementation of phytase increased (P < 0.05) the bone-breaking strength, whereas tibia ash was decreased (P < 0.05). The results demonstrate that the adverse effect of increasing Ca:P on P utilization in a soybean meal-based diet is consistent with or without phytase supplementation.
Published Version
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