How supplementation with amylase or amylase + xylanase in newly harvested maize-based diets affects broiler nutrient metabolism and performance is unclear. Thus, this study evaluated whether the supplementation of amylase (CN) or amylase + xylanase (CAX) improves performance and metabolism of broilers fed with newly harvested maize-based diets during a 6-week production. The results showed that the body weight gain of broilers fed with CA or CAX diet was higher than that with the control (CN) diet at 1-21 d of age; however, an opposite trend was observed for feed/gain (p < 0.05). Furthermore, 150, 64 and 35 different metabolites were found between CA/CN, CAX/CN and CAX/CA, respectively. Overall, amylase supplementation improved broiler growth performance at 1-21 d of age, and the positive effects of amylase on nutrient utilization were mostly related to nicotinate, retinol and glutathione metabolism improvement. Moreover, CAX diet increased apparent metabolizable energy and growth performance of broilers at 22-42 d of age, and the difference might be related to sphingolipid, porphyrin and chlorophyll metabolism regulation. The findings prove amylase + xylanase supplementation is an effective method to improve the nutritional value of newly harvested maize for broilers.
Keywords: Amylase; broilers; metabolism; newly harvested maize; xylanase.