Abstract
ABSTRACT: Coturniculture has been promising, progressing from a subsistence to a technical activity due to its quick production, low breeding investment, and rapid economic return. After the restriction of antimicrobials as growth promoters, some studies aimed to evaluate alternative products that would make the farming of healthy birds viable without impacting their performance, with commercial Macleaya cordata extract being one of these substitutes. The functions of the gastrointestinal tract are coordinated mainly by the enteric nervous system, and the myenteric plexus is responsible for the reflex control of contractile activities of the external muscles. Thus, this study located and demonstrated the distribution of the myenteric plexus, quantifing the total population of myenteric neurons (Giemsa+) and the subpopulation of myenteric nitrergic neurons (NADPH-d+), and evaluated the effects of commercial Macleaya cordata extract on these populations of quail jejunum neurons. A total of 240 one-day-old female laying quails were distributed into four treatments, with four repetitions of 15 birds each. The test groups (T1, T2, and T3) were treated with commercial Macleaya cordata extract throughout the experimental period using the following doses: T1 - test group, basal diet added with 150 ppm of the extract in the feed; T2- test group, basal diet added with100 ppm of the extract in the feed; T3 - test group, basal diet added with 50 ppm of the extract in the feed; and T4 - control group, basal diet with no added extract. The study included histological analysis, Giemsa+, and NADPH-d+ myenteric neuron staining. The results showed that the myenteric plexus is located between longitudinal layer fibers and in the transition region between the longitudinal and circular layers of the muscular tunic, with the myenteric population organized into ganglia and isolated in the region of neuronal fiber bundles. The commercial Macleaya cordata extract showed no quantitative changes in the myenteric Giemsa+ population and myenteric NADPH-d+ subpopulation, however, the groups that consumed the extract showed greater NADPH-d+ neuron activity compared to the control group, implying that the food remained longer in the intestinal lumen, therefore, enabling greater nutrient use and resulting in increased productive performance.
Highlights
Coturniculture has been promising, progressing from a subsistence to a technical activity due to its quick production, low breeding investment, and rapid economic return
The test groups (T1, T2 and T3) were treated with commercial Macleaya cordata extract through out the experimental period using the following doses: T1 - test group, basal diet added with 150 ppm of the extract in the feed; T2 - test group, basal diet added with 100 ppm of the extract in the feed; T3 - test group, basal diet added with 50 ppm of the extract in the feed; and T4 - control group, basal diet with no added extract
FRAUCHES et al (2016), FURNESS (2006), and HANSEN (2003), reported that the myenteric plexus is in this position from the esophagus to the rectum, and LI et al (1994) reported that it is in the small intestine of broiler quails (Coturnix coturnix coturnix)
Summary
Coturniculture has been promising, progressing from a subsistence to a technical activity due to its quick production, low breeding investment, and rapid economic return. Coturniculture has encouraging characteristics such as low initial investment and fast economic return, with quails being fast-growing birds with good feed conversion, early sexual maturity (35 to 42 days), and productive longevity (14 and 18 months), which requires small farming spaces (MURAKAMI & ARIKI, 1998; PASTORE et al, 2012). In this context, quail farming plays an important social role, providing a source of income for family agriculture and small rural producers (SILVA et al, 2018)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
