Effects of different supplemental levels of protease DE200 on the production performance, egg quality, and cecum microflora of laying hens.

This study aimed to investigate the effects of different levels of the protease DE200 on the performance, egg quality, organ index, and cecum microflora of Hy-line W36 laying hens. In this experiment, a total of 180 laying hens aged 300 d were randomly divided into three treatment groups and fed diets containing 0, 100, or 200 g/t DE200. The experimental period was 8 wk, including 2 wk of prefeeding and 6 wk of the formal experiment. Regular feeding was performed thrice a day and eggs were collected twice daily, and the feed intake and the egg quality were recorded. The results showed that in terms of production performance, dietary supplementation with different levels of DE200 significantly increased egg production (EP; P < 0.05) and significantly decreased the feed conversion ratio (FCR; P < 0.05) and average daily feed intake (ADFI; P < 0.05) without affecting egg weight (EW). In addition, the addition of DE200 significantly reduced the egg breakage rate (P < 0.05) and tended to increase the Haugh unit and decrease the water content of the yolk (P > 0.05). In the cecal microflora, the addition of DE200 increased the proportions of Bacteroidetes and Firmicutes at the phylum level while reducing the proportion of Fusobacteria. Furthermore, at the genus level, the addition of DE200 increased the proportions of Bacteroides and Faecalibacterium and reduced the proportion of Megamonas. This study suggested that the protease DE200 can be used as a feed supplement to improve the production performance of laying hens.

In the production of laying hens, improving the efficiency of dietary protein utilization is important. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of the protease DE200 on the performance, egg quality and cecal microflora of Hyline white laying hens. A total of 180 laying hens aged 300 d were randomly divided into three treatment groups and fed diets containing 0, 100, or 200 g/t DE200 for 56 d. The results showed that supplementation with 100 or 200 g/t DE200 in the basal diet improved the production performance and egg quality of laying hens. DE200 (100 g/t) improved the balance of the cecal microflora, and DE200 (200 g/t) increased the richness and diversity of the cecal microflora of laying hens. Dietary supplementation with DE200 can improve the intestinal health and nutrient utilization efficiency of laying hens by improving the intestinal flora.

Research Note: Effects of Bacillus coagulans X26 on the production performance, intestinal structure, short-chain fatty acids and flora composition of laying hens during the peak laying period.

This study investigated the effects of Bacillus coagulans X26 on the production performance, egg quality, intestinal structure, intestinal short-chain fatty acids, and microbial diversity of laying hens during the peak laying period and explored the possibility of using B. coagulans X26 as an alternative to antibiotics. The results showed that adding 1.0 × 106 CFU/g B. coagulans X26 to the basal diet had the best effect: the average laying rate increased by 4.20% (P < 0.05), the survival rate increased by 7.15% (P < 0.05), the feed intake decreased by 3.06% (P < 0.05), the ratio of feed to egg decreased by 7.42% (P < 0.05), the rate of soft-broken eggshell decreased by 73.04% (P < 0.05), the average egg weight increased by 2.94% (P < 0.05), and the content of egg white protein increased by 5.77% (P < 0.05). The production performance and egg quality of laying hens reached the same level as that of hens fed a diet supplemented with chlortetracycline hydrochloride in this study, and there were significant advantages in the average laying rate and feed-egg ratio (P < 0.05). Both chlortetracycline hydrochloride and B. coagulans X26 altered the flora composition and the SCFA content of the intestinal contents; however, B. coagulans X26 also significantly increased the villus height of the ileum and the ratio of villus height to crypt depth (P < 0.05).

Effects of α-ketoglutarate on energy status in the intestinal mucosa of weaned piglets chronically challenged with lipopolysaccharide.

The present study determined whether α-ketoglutarate (AKG) might affect the expression of AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) and energy status in the intestinal mucosa of piglets challenged with Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharide (LPS). A total of eighteen piglets (weaned at 21 d of age) were allocated to one of three treatments: (1) non-challenged (control); (2) LPS-challenged (LPS); (3) LPS+1 % AKG (LPS+AKG). Piglets in the control and LPS groups were fed a maize- and soyabean meal-based diet, and the LPS+AKG group was fed the basal diet supplemented with 1 % AKG. On days 10, 12, 14 and 16 of the trial, piglets in the LPS and LPS+AKG groups were challenged with LPS (80 µg/kg body weight), whereas piglets in the control group received the same volume of sterile saline. Pigs were euthanised 24 h after the last administration of LPS or saline to obtain intestinal mucosae for biochemical analysis. Compared with the control group, LPS administration decreased (P < 0·05) the oxidation of AKG, oleic acid, glutamine and glucose in enterocytes, decreased concentrations of ATP in the duodenal and jejunal mucosae and decreased adenylate energy charge (AMP:ATP ratio) in the jejunal and ileal mucosae. Additionally, LPS treatment reduced (P < 0·05) mucosal concentrations of phosphorylated AMPK in the jejunum and ileum as well as acetyl-CoA carboxylase in all segments of the small intestine. The adverse effects of LPS were reversed by AKG. Collectively, these results indicate that dietary supplementation with 1 % AKG beneficially modulates the AMPK signalling pathway to improve energy status in the small intestine of LPS-challenged piglets.