Effects of Lactobacilli and an acidophilic fungus on the production performance and immune responses in broiler chickens

Department of Animal Science, McGill University, 21,111 Lakeshore Road, Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue, Quebec, Canada H9X 3V9.

Accumulated lines of evidence indicate that inactivated probiotics could have beneficial effects similar to those of live probiotics. Two strains of disrupted, cobalt-enriched, lactic acid bacteria (Lactobacillus acidophilus and Lactobacillus casei) and a disrupted fungal mycelium (Scytalidium acidophilum) were spray-mixed onto a mash basal feed, in 2 concentrations, prior to pelleting. The effects of these probiotics on production performance and immune response in broiler chickens were investigated. The production parameters, including BW, feed intake (FI), BW gain (BWG), and feed conversion ratio (FCR), were monitored weekly during a 6-wk trial. The immune response was evaluated by immunizing the birds with the antigen keyhole limpet hemocyanin (KLH) followed by a serological assay to measure blood IgA and IgG titers. Some of the production parameters were significantly improved by low L. casei (LCL; for BW and BWG), high L. acidophilus (LAH; for BW and BWG), and high fungal (FH; for BW, BWG, and FI) in comparison with the nonadditive control (NC-). However, these 3 treatments (LCL, LAH, and FH) did not enhance the measured immune responses. Instead, the titers of serum KLH-specific IgA in high L. casei (LCH) and low L. acidophilus (LAL) were significantly higher than those of NC-, 10 d after immunization. None of the probiotic treatments increased the titer of KLH-specific IgG in blood. Our results indicate that disrupted and cobalt-enriched L. acidophilus or L. casei was able to enhance production performance of broiler chickens. The fungal mycelium, S. acidophilum, when used at a high concentration, also demonstrated its potential for the first time to be used as a probiotic. In addition, the optimal concentration for administering probiotics is strain dependent. A higher dose does not always result in a better performance.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				N. H. Zhu, R. J. Zhang, H. Wu, and B. Zhang Effects of Lactobacillus cultures on growth performance, xanthophyll deposition, and color of the meat and skin of broilers J. Appl. Poult. Res., January 1, 2009; 18(3): 570 - 578. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				J. T. Brisbin, J. Gong, C. A. Lusty, P. Sabour, B. Sanei, Y. Han, P. E. Shewen, and S. Sharif Influence of In-Feed Virginiamycin on the Systemic and Mucosal Antibody Response of Chickens Poult. Sci., October 1, 2008; 87(10): 1995 - 1999. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				S. J. Jung, R. Houde, B. Baurhoo, X. Zhao, and B. H. Lee Effects of Galacto-Oligosaccharides and a Bifidobacteria lactis-Based Probiotic Strain on the Growth Performance and Fecal Microflora of Broiler Chickens Poult. Sci., September 1, 2008; 87(9): 1694 - 1699. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				S. E. Higgins, J. P. Higgins, A. D. Wolfenden, S. N. Henderson, A. Torres-Rodriguez, G. Tellez, and B. Hargis Evaluation of a Lactobacillus-Based Probiotic Culture for the Reduction of Salmonella Enteritidis in Neonatal Broiler Chicks Poult. Sci., January 1, 2008; 87(1): 27 - 31. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				S. E. Higgins, G. F. Erf, J. P. Higgins, S. N. Henderson, A. D. Wolfenden, G. Gaona-Ramirez, and B. M. Hargis Effect of Probiotic Treatment in Broiler Chicks on Intestinal Macrophage Numbers and Phagocytosis of Salmonella Enteritidis by Abdominal Exudate Cells Poult. Sci., November 1, 2007; 86(11): 2315 - 2321. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				A. Torres-Rodriguez, A. M. Donoghue, D. J. Donoghue, J. T. Barton, G. Tellez, and B. M. Hargis Performance and Condemnation Rate Analysis of Commercial Turkey Flocks Treated with a Lactobacillus spp.-Based Probiotic Poult. Sci., March 1, 2007; 86(3): 444 - 446. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				K. C. Mountzouris, P. Tsirtsikos, E. Kalamara, S. Nitsch, G. Schatzmayr, and K. Fegeros Evaluation of the Efficacy of a Probiotic Containing Lactobacillus, Bifidobacterium, Enterococcus, and Pediococcus Strains in Promoting Broiler Performance and Modulating Cecal Microflora Composition and Metabolic Activities Poult. Sci., February 1, 2007; 86(2): 309 - 317. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				E. E. O'Dea, G. M. Fasenko, G. E. Allison, D. R. Korver, G. W. Tannock, and L. L. Guan Investigating the effects of commercial probiotics on broiler chick quality and production efficiency. Poult. Sci., October 1, 2006; 85(10): 1855 - 1863. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				H. R. Haghighi, J. Gong, C. L. Gyles, M. A. Hayes, B. Sanei, P. Parvizi, H. Gisavi, J. R. Chambers, and S. Sharif Modulation of Antibody-Mediated Immune Response by Probiotics in Chickens Clin. Vaccine Immunol., December 1, 2005; 12(12): 1387 - 1392. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]