<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

In the present study, an herbal feed additive was tested for partial-to-complete replacement of synthetic methionine in poultry diets, along with its effects on performance, breast and thigh meat chemical composition, oxidative stability during refrigerated storage and the expression of five target genes in liver. In a 35 days trial, 600 one-day-old male chicks were randomly allocated to 4 groups with 10 replicates. Birds in the control group were fed a regular maize–soybean-based diet that covered DL-methionine needs while the second group (Meth40) was similar to control but contained only DL – Methionine at 40% of control diet. Diet in third group contained DLMethionine at 40% of control and the herbal feed additive Methiorep TMMeth40+Mrep) with extracts of <italic>Boerhavia diffusa, Azadirachta indica, Vigna mungo</italic> and <italic>Trigonella foenum-graecum</italic>. Diet of fourth group was formulated to totally replace DL Methionine by Methiorep TM (Mrep). Body weight gain and feed consumption were weekly recorded. At the end of the trial, all birds were slaughtered and 2 chickens per pen were selected for meat and liver sampling. The liver was tested for the expression of five target genes, namely Methionine synthase (MTR), Tyrosine aminotransferase (TAT), Spermidine synthase (SMS), Methionine sulfoxide reductase (MSRB1) and Betaine homocysteine S-methyltransferase (BHMT). The results showed that the Meth40 group had reduced body weight compared to the Meth40+Mrep group while the Control and Mrep groups had comparable weights. Feed intake and feed conversion ratio did not differ among the experimental groups. Carcass, breast and thigh meat yield were higher in the Mrep and the Control compared to Meth40 and Meth40+Mrep groups. Also, meat oxidation was significantly lower in herbal groups compared to the control group. After normalization to β-actin expression, quantitative real-time PCR analysis revealed an induction in the expression of MTR and SMS genes in the liver of both herbal treated groups. No changes were observed for the TAT, MSRB1and BHMT genes in the herbal treated groups compared to the control or the Meth40 group. In conclusion, herbal feed additives with specific plant extracts may be able to improve both growth performance and antioxidant activity of broiler chickens, phenolic content; yet, they may also support in amino acid efficient use of broiler.
</abstract>

In the present study, an herbal feed additive was tested for partial-to-complete replacement of synthetic methionine in poultry diets, along with its effects on performance, breast and thigh meat chemical composition, oxidative stability during refrigerated storage and the expression of five target genes in liver. In a 35 days trial, 600 one-day-old male chicks were randomly allocated to 4 groups with 10 replicates. Birds in the control group were fed a regular maize–soybean-based diet that covered DL-methionine needs while the second group (Meth40) was similar to control but contained only DL – Methionine at 40% of control diet. Diet in third group contained DLMethionine at 40% of control and the herbal feed additive Methiorep TMMeth40+Mrep) with extracts of Boerhavia diffusa, Azadirachta indica, Vigna mungo and Trigonella foenum-graecum. Diet of fourth group was formulated to totally replace DL Methionine by Methiorep TM (Mrep). Body weight gain and feed consumption were weekly recorded. At the end of the trial, all birds were slaughtered and 2 chickens per pen were selected for meat and liver sampling. The liver was tested for the expression of five target genes, namely Methionine synthase (MTR), Tyrosine aminotransferase (TAT), Spermidine synthase (SMS), Methionine sulfoxide reductase (MSRB1) and Betaine homocysteine S-methyltransferase (BHMT). The results showed that the Meth40 group had reduced body weight compared to the Meth40+Mrep group while the Control and Mrep groups had comparable weights. Feed intake and feed conversion ratio did not differ among the experimental groups. Carcass, breast and thigh meat yield were higher in the Mrep and the Control compared to Meth40 and Meth40+Mrep groups. Also, meat oxidation was significantly lower in herbal groups compared to the control group. After normalization to β-actin expression, quantitative real-time PCR analysis revealed an induction in the expression of MTR and SMS genes in the liver of both herbal treated groups. No changes were observed for the TAT, MSRB1and BHMT genes in the herbal treated groups compared to the control or the Meth40 group. In conclusion, herbal feed additives with specific plant extracts may be able to improve both growth performance and antioxidant activity of broiler chickens, phenolic content; yet, they may also support in amino acid efficient use of broiler.

Effects of dietary supplementation with herbal extract as methionine replacer on growth performance, meat composition, oxidative stability and liver gene expression in broiler chickens

Laboratory of Nutrition, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine

Laboratory of Pharmacognosy, School of Pharmacy, Faculty of Health Sciences

Laboratory of Physiology of Reproduction of Farm Animals

Department of Animal Production, School of Agriculture

Archiva Zootechnica

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

In the present study, an herbal feed additive was tested for partial-to-complete replacement of synthetic methionine in poultry diets, along with its effects...

Effects of dietary supplementation with herbal extract as methionine replacer on growth performance, meat composition, oxidative stability and liver gene expression in broiler chickens

Published Online: Dec 12, 2022

Page range: 39 - 62

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/azibna-2022-0013

Keywords
herbal extracts, lipid oxidation methionine replacer, liver gene expression

© 2022 Ilias Giannenas et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Effects of dietary supplementation with herbal extract as methionine replacer on growth performance, meat composition, oxidative stability and liver gene expression in broiler chickens

Published Online: Dec 12, 2022

Page range: 39 - 62

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/azibna-2022-0013

Keywordsherbal extracts, lipid oxidation methionine replacer, liver gene expression

© 2022 Ilias Giannenas et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Keywords
herbal extracts, lipid oxidation methionine replacer, liver gene expression