B. Coskun

Effect of probiotic supplementation on laying hen diets on yield performance and serum and egg yolk cholesterol

The effects of dietary supplementation of a commercial probiotic (BioPlus 2B) on daily feed consumption, egg yield, egg weight, specific gravity, body weight, feed conversion ratio, serum and egg yolk cholesterol, and serum trigylceride in layer hens were investigated. In 12 replicates, 480 27-week-old Brown-Nick layers were fed with diets containing 0, 250, 500 or 750 mg kg−1 probiotic for 90 days. When compared with the controls, supplementation of 250, 500 and 750 mg kg−1 probiotic increased egg production, but decreased the damaged egg ratio (p<0.05), egg yolk cholesterol and serum cholesterol (p<0.001) levels. In addition, serum triglyceride levels were reduced by using 500 and 750 mg kg−1 probiotic supplementation (p<0.001). Feed conversion ratios were positively affected by supplementation of 250 and 500 mg kg−1 probiotic compared with controls (p<0.05). There was no statistically significant difference between the control and all treatment groups on feed consumption, egg weight, specific gravity, body weight, and egg yolk weight.

Effect of lactose and dried whey supplementation on growth performance and histology of the immune system in broilers.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of lactose and dried whey supplementation as dietary component on growth performance and histology of lymphoid organs and ileum in broilers. A total of 480 day-old chicks were utilised for 42 days. Animals were assigned randomly to one of three treatments: control, lactose (2.5%), and dried whey (3.85%). Body weight was greater for animals supplemented with lactose or dried whey than for those not supplemented. There were no effects of treatments on feed intake and feed efficiency. In general, the effects of lactose or dried whey supplementation on histology of lymphoid organs and ileum were variable. Plasma cell counts were lower for animals supplemented with lactose than for those supplemented with dried whey. However, the length of intestinal villi during the starter period was greater for experimental groups than for control group.

Effects of Echinacea extract on the performance, antibody titres, and intestinal histology of layer chicks

1. This research was conducted to determine the effect of diet supplementation with Echinacea extract (cichoric acid) on the growth performance, antibody titres and intestinal tissue histology of layer chicks. 2. White, 1-d-old, Hy-Line hybrid chicks (n = 540) were divided into three treatments, each consisting of 6 groups of 30 chicks (n = 180): (1) control; (2) 2·5 mg/kg cichoric-acid-fed; and (3) 5 mg/kg cichoric-acid-fed. The trial lasted 60 d. 3. While the growth performance of the chicks was depressed between d 1 and 45, it was found to improve between d 45 and 60. 4. Feed consumption was lower in both of the cichoric-acid-fed groups than in the control group between d 1–15 and 15–30, but was higher between d 30 and 45. Overall, mean feed consumption did not differ between the control and cichoric-acid-fed groups during the 60 d study period. 5. During the 60 d evaluation period, live weight gain, feed utilisation rate and final live weight were higher in the control group than in both of the cichoric-acid-fed groups. 6. Antibody titres against infectious bronchitis and infectious bursal disease did not differ between the three groups, but those for Newcastle disease were higher in the 2·5 mg/kg cichoric-acid-fed group than in the control group after 45 d. 7. Height and width of the jejunal villus and the thickness of the muscle layer were lower in the 5 mg/kg cichoric-acid-fed group than in both the control and the 2·5 mg/kg cichoric-acid-fed groups. The height of the ileal villus was also lower in the 5 mg/kg cichoric-acid-fed group than in the other two groups. 8. Echinacea extract supplementation for layer chicks appears not to benefit growth performance and intestinal histology during the growing period.

Forage yields and feeding value of small grain winter cereals for lambs

BACKGROUND An understanding of the dynamics that affect the nutrient content of forages with advancing growth stages is critical for designing equally dynamic feeding programmes. This study compared the agronomic characteristic and feeding values of forages from barley, rye, wheat, oats and triticale weekly from tillering (Z 24-25) to dough stages of maturity (Z 83-87). RESULT Digestible dry matter yield of cereal species increased rapidly (P < 0.05) from 1.9 t ha(-1) at tillering to 7.8 t ha(-1) at ear emergence (Z 50-55) and remained stable (P > 0.05) until the dough stage when it increased to 10.4 t ha(-1) . The nutritive quality of cereal species decreased with advancing growth stages, and this was more pronounced in barley and rye with rapid reductions in their energy and digestibility values. Changes in the nutritive value of cereal forages indicated a strong relationship (P < 0.05) with the leaf-stem ratio of the plants. The animal response reflected the changes in feeding value of cereal species with advancing growth stages. The average live weight gain of lambs decreased (P < 0.05) from an average of 203 g d(-1) on 2 May to 142 g d(-1) on the 13 June. CONCLUSION Wheat and oats, and to a lesser extent triticale, provided higher quality forages than barley and rye. All cereal species had poor feeding qualities between ear emergence and milk stages (Z 71-75).

Determination of protein degradability of alfalfa hay via buffer or protease

Abstract This study was conducted to determine the effect of different vegetative periods on protein fractions of alfalfa hay and to compare two different methods for estimation of its protein degradability. In this study, 44 alfalfa hay samples cut in late vegetative, late bud, early bloom and late bloom were used. Crude protein decreased with advancing maturity (p < .05), but neutral detergent insoluble nitrogen and acid detergent insoluble nitrogen were similar. Protein degradability of the samples was estimated using Streptomyces griseus protease or borate–phosphate buffer, kinetic model, as described in Cornell Net Carbohydrate Protein System (CNCPS). Alfalfa hay samples were subjected to proteolysis for 30 h with 0.115 U/mL or 0.230 U/mL of the protease at pH 6.8. There was a moderate correlation (0.66, 0.72) between enzymatic and buffer method estimates with protein degradation. As vegetation progresses, rapidly degradable fraction (A) decreased (p < .05) and undegradable fraction (C) increased (p < .05), while potentially degradable fraction (B) was unchanged. Rumen degradable protein content decreased (p < .05) with advancing maturity. The enzyme/duration limits should be standardised and investigated whether the protease enzyme alone is sufficient for all forages.