Key Gonzales (marksupply9)
05) with increasing α-amylase supplementation. Starch disappearance and digestible energy (kcal/kg) linearly increased (P less then 0.01) with digesta flow from the AJ to PJ as dietary α-amylase supplementation increased. There were linear (P less then 0.01) and quadratic (P less then 0.05) effects of increasing α-amylase supplementation on the villus height in the jejunum. The viscosity of the jejunal digesta decreased (P less then 0.05) with increasing dietary α-amylase supplementation. The results from this study showed the efficacy of exogenous amylase in improving growth performance and starch and energy digestibility in broiler chickens. Furthermore, the digestibility of starch and energy and the impact of the exogenous amylase were higher at the PJ than other intestinal sites.Probiotics, toxin binders, and plant extracts improve health and immunity of broiler chickens exposed to aflatoxin. The effects of licorice extract (LE), Protexin probiotic, toxin binder (Agrabound), and poultry litter biochar (PLB) in experimental aflatoxicosis were evaluated. In a completely randomized design, 504 broiler chickens were allotted to 7 treatments and 6 replicates with 12 broiler chickens in each. The experimental groups were as follows T1) basal diet (B) without any feed additive or aflatoxin B1 (AFB1); T2) B + 0.5 mg AFB1/kg; T3) T2 + 3 g LE/kg; T4) T2 + 6 g LE/kg; T5) T2 + 0.5 g Protexin/kg; T6) T2 + 1 g toxin binder/kg, and T7) T2 + 5 g/kg PLB. Broiler chickens fed AFB diet (T2) had lower body weight gain at the end of grower period and higher feed conversion ratio at the end of the finisher period, whereas inclusion of LE, probiotic, toxin binder, or PLB restores body weight of broiler chickens to that of the control group. Aflatoxicosis decreased total protein, TG, albumin, Ca, and P concde concentration, and liver pathological damages (P less then 0.05). It can be concluded that all of the additives are capable to decrease the negative impact of AFB1 on broiler chickens' performance, blood indices, and immunity.The gut microbiota play an important role in the growth and intestinal health of broilers. The present study was to investigate the gut microbiota, short-chain fatty acids, and intestinal morphology of broilers at different ages. A total of 320 one-day-old male broilers were raised in 8 replicates and fed the same corn-soybean diets for 42 D. The duodenal, jejunal, and ileal segments and their and cecal microbiota were collected on day 1, 7, 14, 21, and 42, respectively. The villous height (VH), crypt depth (CD), and their ratio of VHCD in the duodenum, jejunum, and ileum all increased (P less then 0.05) with age. Caecal acetate, propionate, butyrate, valerate, and isovalerate increased (P less then 0.01), but isobutyrate decreased (P less then 0.001) with age. The cecum had the greatest (P less then 0.001) alpha diversity of bacterial community in broilers at different ages. Beta diversities showed distinct differences in gut microbial compositions among different ages (R = 0.55, P less then 0.002) the cecum might contribute to the development of intestinal structure in the whole growing period of broilers.The present study evaluated the effects of natural astaxanthin (ASTA) from Haematococcus pluvialis on the antioxidant capacity, lipid metabolism, and ASTA accumulation in the egg yolk of laying hens. Hy-Line Brown layers (n = 288, 50 wk old) were randomly assigned to 1 of 4 dietary treatment groups. Each group had 6 replicates of 12 hens each. All birds were given a corn-soybean meal-based diet containing 0, 25, 50, or 100 mg/kg ASTA for 6 wk. The results showed that the total antioxidant capacity, superoxide dismutase level, and glutathione peroxidase level in the plasma, livers, and egg yolks were significantly increased in the ASTA groups compared with those of the control group (P less then 0.05), whereas the content of malondialdehyde linearly decreased (P less then 0.05). The plasma levels of high-density and
