Evaluation of stimbiotic on growth performance and intestinal development of broilers fed corn- or wheat-based diets

Yangguang Ren; Yixiang Tian; Meng Hou; Yudian Zhao; Jing Li; Usama Aftab; Xaviere Rousseau; Ruirui Jiang; Xiangtao Kang; Yadong Tian; Yujie Gong

doi:10.1016/j.psj.2023.103094

Evaluation of stimbiotic on growth performance and intestinal development of broilers fed corn- or wheat-based diets

Poult Sci. 2023 Dec;102(12):103094. doi: 10.1016/j.psj.2023.103094. Epub 2023 Sep 9.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450046, China; Henan Key Laboratory for Innovation and Utilization of Chicken Germplasm Resources, Zhengzhou 450046, China.
² College of Animal Science and Veterinary Medicine, Henan Institute of Science and Technology, Xinxiang 453003, China.
³ AB Vista, Marlborough SN8 4AN, UK.
⁴ College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450046, China; Henan Key Laboratory for Innovation and Utilization of Chicken Germplasm Resources, Zhengzhou 450046, China. Electronic address: yjgong@henau.edu.cn.

Abstract

In the antibiotics-free era, stimbiotic (STB) has been suggested as a new alternative of antibiotic growth promoters to modulate intestinal health via stimulating dietary fiber utilization in poultry production. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of STB supplementation in corn- or wheat-basal diet on growth performance, intestinal development, and function of broilers. A total of 512 one-day-old Arbor Acres(AA)broilers were randomly allocated 4 treatments, including corn group (CG), corn + 100 g/t STB (CG + STB), wheat group (WG), wheat + 100 g/t STB (WG + STB). The broilers were weighed at the days of 14, 28, and 42, of which 8 repetitions per treatment were randomly selected to determine the intestinal morphology, intestinal barrier, and cecal microbiota and metabolites. Our data showed that STB increased (P < 0.05) feed intake, body weight and reduced FCR for the overall period (0-42 d). At 28 d of age, significant increases in villus height and the villus height-to-crypt depth ratio (V/C) were found in the STB supplementation groups (P < 0.05). Addition of STB significantly increased intestinal mucosal DAO and AMPK enzyme activity and the gene expression of OCLN, CLDN1, ZO1, MUC2, SGLT1, PEPT1, FABP2, Ghrelin, and GCG in jejunum (P < 0.05), and significantly decreased the expression of the PYY gene. In addition, STB increased the relative abundance of beneficial bacteria, such as Akkermansia, Bifidobacterium, and Oscillospirales (P < 0.05). A significant increase in cecal short-chain fatty acid (SCFAs) concentration was also observed in the STB supplementation groups. At the cellular level, STB cannot directly increase the expression of small intestinal epithelial cells, and may indirectly improve intestinal barrier function by increasing the level of sodium butyrate. Overall, these results indicated that STB supplementation could improve the growth performance, intestinal development and barrier functions, and fiber fermentation in cecum of broiler chickens.

Keywords: broiler; growth performance; intestinal barrier; microbiota; stimbiotic.

Publication types

Randomized Controlled Trial, Veterinary

MeSH terms

Animal Feed / analysis
Animals
Chickens*
Diet / veterinary
Dietary Supplements*
Triticum
Zea mays