Abstract
Simple SummaryThe growth-promoting effect of many herbs and their extracts in poultry has been reported in literature. Therefore, the objective of this feeding trial was to determine the effect of different levels of summer savory (Satureja hortensis L.) extract in diet on broilers performance, immune response, hematology, and microbiota. Based on findings, dietary supplementation with summer savory extract, as natural feed additive, sustained growth traits and improved the feed efficiency and health status of broilers.This study investigated the effects of summer savory (Satureja hortensis L.) extract (SSE) on growth, plasma constituents, immune response, and gut microbiota of broiler chickens. A total of 300 day-old broiler chicks were randomly assigned to five dietary treatments containing five replicates of 12 birds each. The treatments consisted of a controldiet without feed additive and experimental diets supplemented with four levels of SSE (100, 200, 300, and 400 mg/kg, respectively). Results showed no significant effect of SSE supplementation on broiler body weight gain (p > 0.05), but feed conversion ratio was significantly (p < 0.05) improved when fed 400 mg/kg SSE compared to control. Most of the blood parameters and immune response criteria studied were improved (p < 0.05) by SSE supplementation. There was no dietary effect on Lactobacilli count (p > 0.05); conversely, Escherichia coli count was reduced and the Lactobacilli/E. coli ratio improved with SSE (p < 0.05). Based on our findings, it was concluded that supplementation of the diet with SSE up to 400 mg/kg sustained growth traits and improved the feed efficiency and health status of broilers. However, more research is needed on this subject in order to better understand the mode of action of the extract used.
Highlights
The gradual ban of antibiotics in animal feed due to their health hazards to both animal and human consumers of animal products has increased the research interest into natural products with antimicrobial activity [1,2]
Savory (Satureja hortensis L.) is an annual herbaceous aromatic and medicinal plant belonging to the Lamiaceae family
Dried savory was infused with boiling water at 100 ◦ C (1 L water:200 g dry herb) for 10 min, cooled at room temperature and strained to obtain summer savory extract (SSE)
Summary
The gradual ban of antibiotics in animal feed due to their health hazards to both animal and human consumers of animal products has increased the research interest into natural products with antimicrobial activity [1,2]. The use of medicinal herbs and their extracts as natural growth promoters in poultry diets has been reported [3,4,5]. Animals 2019, 9, 87 which have several health benefits including anti-inflammatory [6,7], antioxidant [8], antibacterial [8,9], and antifungal [10] activities in animals and humans. It may be worth investigating the effect of summer savory extract on poultry production.
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