Abstract The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effect of Phyllanthus urinaria supplement on fatty liver hemorrhagic syndrome (FLHS) in hens. Forty 7-week-old ISA hens were randomly divided into four groups (n = 10), including control diet group (CON), high cholesterol and low choline diet group (CLC), and CLC with 1% P. urinaria powder group (PU). CLC diet and the supplementation of P. urinaria for six weeks exhibited no impact on feed intake and body weight (P > 0.05). The triglyceride (TG) and the total cholesterol (TC) in plasma was increased at week 6 (TG: CON = 18.86 ± 0.97 mg/dL and CLC = 66.45 ± 7.17 mg/dL; TC: CON = 130.41 ± 5.87 mg/dL and CLC = 308.11 ± 27.97 mg/dL); nevertheless, P. urinaria decreased the triglyceride in plasma (PU = 41.19 ± 4.88 mg/dl, P < 0.05), but not total cholesterol (PU = 259.11 ± 20.88 mg/dL, P > 0.05). The malondialdehyde (MDA) concentration in plasma was decreased with 1% P. urinaria powder group (CLC = 64.81 ± 3.71 mg/dL and PU = 49.13 ± 4.20 mg/dL, P < 0.05). Under liver macroscopic analysis, PU demonstrated the least percentage of severe in hepatic appearance (CLC = 22% and PU = 0%). Similarly, the liver microscopic examination (H&E) suggested the PU supplementation reduced steatosis score (CLC = 2.89 ± 0.11 and PU = 2.11 ± 0.16) and blooning (CLC = 1.63 ± 0.22 and PU = 0.88 ± 0.31) in the hepatocyte. To sum up, this study revealed the hepatoprotective effect of Phyllanthus urinaria and provided a potential strategy for preventing FLHS to improve the welfare in hens.
Read full abstract