Effects of tannic acid on cecal volatile fatty acids and susceptibility to Salmonella typhimurium colonization in broiler chicks

USDA, ARS, Southern Plains Agricultural Research Center, Food and Feed Safety Research Unit, College Station, Texas 77845, USA. kubena@usda.tamu.edu

Young chickens are more susceptible to Salmonella colonization than older chickens that have developed resistance with age as native microflora become established. Elevated concentrations of cecal propionic acid and total volatile fatty acids (VFA) have been observed by many researchers to be indicators of establishment of anaerobic microflora and protection against Salmonella colonization of the ceca. Disruption of the native microflora or competitive exclusion (CE) cultures by components of diets, such as tannic acid (TA), could alter the concentrations of propionic acid and total VFA and possibly affect Salmonella colonization. Two experiments were conducted using day-of-hatch, mixed-sex broiler chicks to evaluate the effects of TA on cecal VFA and the susceptibility to Salmonella colonization. All chicks in both experiments were challenged orally with 10(4) cfu of Salmonella typhimurium (ST) on Day 3 (Experiment 1) or Day 4 (Experiment 2). One-half of the chicks were orally gavaged on the day of hatch with a CE culture (PREEMPT) and were fed diets containing 0, 0.75, or 1.5% TA for up to 12 d of age. Chicks were maintained in batteries in separate rooms for the experimental period. There were some alterations in concentrations of cecal propionic acid or total VFA in chicks fed diets containing 0.75 or 1.5% TA in non CE-treated chicks and in CE-treated chicks. No significant differences were observed for numbers of Salmonella cecal culture-positive chicks or in the numbers of ST in the cecal contents due to dietary content of TA. With minor exceptions, the chicks treated with the CE culture had higher cecal concentrations of propionic acid and were less susceptible to Salmonella colonization than the non CE-treated chicks. Further research is necessary to determine the biological significance of these changes.