Abstract

The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of mycotoxin binders in reducing the adverse effects of co-occurring dietary aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), deoxynivalenol (DON) and ochratoxin A (OTA) on laying hens. Three hundred and sixty 26-week-old Roman laying hens were randomly allocated into four experimental groups with 10 replicates of nine birds each. The four groups received either a basal diet (BD; Control), a BD supplemented with 0.15 mg/kg AFB1 + 1.5 mg/kg DON + 0.12 mg/kg OTA (Toxins), a BD + Toxins with Toxo-HP binder (Toxins + HP), or a BD + Toxins with TOXO XL binder (Toxins + XL) for 12 weeks. Compared to the control, dietary supplementation of mycotoxins decreased (P < 0.10) total feed intake, total egg weight, and egg-laying rate, but increased feed/egg ratio by 2.5–6.1% and mortality during various experimental periods. These alterations induced by mycotoxins were alleviated by supplementation with both TOXO HP and XL binders (P < 0.10). Furthermore, dietary mycotoxins reduced (P < 0.05) eggshell strength by 12.3% and caused an accumulation of 249 μg/kg of DON in eggs at week 12, while dietary supplementation with TOXO HP or XL mitigated DON-induced changes on eggshell strength and prevented accumulation of DON in eggs (P < 0.05). Moreover, dietary mycotoxins increased relative liver weight, but decreased spleen and proventriculus relative weights by 11.6–22.4% (P < 0.05). Mycotoxin exposure also increased alanine aminotransferase activity and reduced immunoglobulin (Ig) A, IgM, and IgG concentrations in serum by 9.2–26.1% (P < 0.05). Additionally, mycotoxin exposure induced histopathological damage and reduced villus height, villus height/crypt depth, and crypt depth in duodenum, jejunum and (or) ileum (P < 0.05). Notably, most of these histological changes were mitigated by supplementation with both TOXO HP and XL (P < 0.05). In conclusion, the present study demonstrated that the mycotoxin binders TOXO HP and XL can help to mitigate the combined effects of AFB1, DON, and OTA on laying hen performance, egg quality, and health.

Highlights

  • Mycotoxins are secondary metabolites of fungi, which are toxic to both humans and animals, and are mainly produced by five mold genera: Aspergillus, Fusarium, Penicillium, Alternaria, and Claviceps [1]

  • Supplementation of TOXO XL mitigated the mycotoxin-induced mortality of laying hens during weeks 1–4 and 1–12

  • Laying hens fed the diet co-contaminated with Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), DON, and ochratoxin A (OTA) exhibited poor performance and egg quality and higher mortality

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Summary

Introduction

Mycotoxins are secondary metabolites of fungi, which are toxic to both humans and animals, and are mainly produced by five mold genera: Aspergillus, Fusarium, Penicillium, Alternaria, and Claviceps [1]. AFB1 is the most toxic mycotoxin, possessing hepatotoxic, mutagenic, carcinogenic, and teratogenic effects on several species of animals [9,10,11]. OTA is mainly accumulated and metabolized in liver and kidney and induces carcinogenic, hepatotoxic, nephrotoxic, and immunotoxic effects [14]. Since these mycotoxins can coexist in animal feed and have combined cytotoxic effects [6,7,15,16], development of mediation strategies that can prevent or counteract the adverse effects of mycotoxin exposure is a high priority

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