Abstract
The aim of this study was to investigate the effect on growth performance and nutrient utilisation when supplementing diets deficient in energy and protein with carbohydrase enzymes or xylo-oligosaccharide in broilers challenged with coccidia. 960 Ross 308 broilers were used in this 21-day study. The treatments were arranged into a 2×4 factorial with 2 challenge states (challenged and non-challenged) and 4 different additive types (control, xylanase alone, xylanase and β-glucanase mixture and xylo-oligosaccharide). On day 14, the challenged group received 12× the recommended dose of coccidiosis vaccine while the non-challenged group received a sham treatment of water only. The birds and feed were weighed on days 0, 14 and 21. On day 21, two birds per pen were euthanized, the caeca were removed and the contents collected for short chain fatty acid analysis. Six more birds per pen were euthanized and ileal digesta were collected and pooled per pen for nutrient digestibility analysis. Feed intake was greater (P < 0.05) on days 14 and 21 when xylo-oligosaccharide was included in the diet compared to the xylanase and β-glucanase mixture in birds challenged with coccidiosis. Including xylo-oligosaccharide in the diet improved (P < 0.05) the digestibility of nitrogen and supplementing diets with the xylanase and β-glucanase mixture improved (P < 0.05) the digestibility of several amino acids. The concentration of arabinose and xylose was (P < 0.001) greater when broiler diets were supplemented with carbohydrase enzymes or xylo-oligosaccharide compared to the control. Although there was an increase in short chain fatty acid production due to the addition of carbohydrase enzymes or xylo-oligosaccharide, there was no additive effect on the %G+C profile of caecal bacteria however there was a negative effect of coccidiosis. In conclusion, the similarity in the response to carbohydrase enzymes or xylo-oligosaccharide supplementation illustrates that the hydrolysis products from carbohydrase activity may have prebiotic like effects.
Highlights
There was an increase in short chain fatty acid production due to the addition of carbohydrase enzymes or xylo-oligosaccharide, there was no additive effect on the %G+C profile of caecal bacteria there was a negative effect of coccidiosis
Non-starch polysaccharide (NSP) is a group of large molecules found in cereal grains such as wheat and barley which are used in poultry diets and have negative effects on growth performance and nutrient utilisation caused by an increase in digesta viscosity [1]
It is not possible to decide on a mechanism of action for the use of enzymes during coccidiosis infection as no data was recorded on intestinal lesion scores there were no significant differences in the number of oocytes collected from birds receiving different additives in the diet
Summary
Non-starch polysaccharide (NSP) is a group of large molecules found in cereal grains such as wheat and barley which are used in poultry diets and have negative effects on growth performance and nutrient utilisation caused by an increase in digesta viscosity [1]. Coccidiosis is a common disease in poultry which is characterised by gastrointestinal lesions and reduced growth performance [5] and is caused by several different Eimeria species [6]. It has been suggested that the improvement in growth performance following enzyme addition was likely due to an increase in nutrient utilisation due to a decrease in ileal digesta viscosity [1].The literature illustrates that supplementing broiler diets with prebiotic or carbohydrase enzymes alleviated the depression in body weight gain caused by sub-clinical coccidiosis [8]
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