Butyrate in combination with forskolin alleviates necrotic enteritis, increases feed efficiency, and improves carcass composition of broilers.

BACKGROUND: The emergence of antimicrobial resistance has necessitated the development of effective alternatives to antibiotics for livestock and poultry production. This study investigated a possible synergy between butyrate and forskolin (a natural labdane diterpene) in enhancing innate host defense, barrier function, disease resistance, growth performance, and meat quality of broilers. METHODS: The expressions of representative genes involved in host defense (AvBD9 and AvBD10), barrier function (MUC2, CLDN1, and TJP1), and inflammation (IL-1ß) were measured in chicken HD11 macrophages in response to butyrate and forskolin in the presence or absence of bacterial lipopolysaccharides (LPS). Intestinal lesions and the Clostridium perfringens titers were also assessed in C. perfringens-challenged chickens fed butyrate and forskolin-containing Coleus forskohlii (CF) extract individually or in combination. Furthermore, growth performance and carcass characteristics were evaluated in broilers supplemented with butyrate and the CF extract for 42 d. RESULTS: Butyrate and forskolin synergistically induced the expressions of AvBD9, AvBD10, and MUC2 in chicken HD11 cells (P < 0.05) and the synergy was maintained in the presence of LPS. Butyrate and forskolin also suppressed LPS-induced IL-1ß gene expression in HD11 cells in a synergistic manner (P < 0.05). The two compounds significantly reduced the intestinal lesions of C. perfringens-challenged chickens when combined (P < 0.05), but not individually. Furthermore, butyrate in combination with forskolin-containing CF extract had no influence on weight gain, but significantly reduced feed intake (P < 0.05) with a strong tendency to improve feed efficiency (P = 0.07) in a 42-d feeding trial. Desirably, the butyrate/forskolin combination significantly decreased abdominal fat deposition (P = 0.01) with no impact on the carcass yield, breast meat color, drip loss, or pH of d-42 broilers. CONCLUSIONS: Butyrate and forskolin has potential to be developed as novel antibiotic alternatives to improve disease resistance, feed efficiency, and carcass composition of broilers.

The effect of black rice water extract on surface color, lipid oxidation, microbial growth, and antioxidant activity of beef patties during chilled storage.

Black rice is rich in phenolic acids and anthocyanin; however, limited studies have determined its effect on ground beef quality. The objective was to determine the effects of 0, 0.4, 0.8, and 1.2% black rice water extract (BRWE) on ground beef patties quality when packaged in polyvinyl chloride (PVC). pH, surface color, lipid oxidation, total plate count, and antioxidant capacity were determined on 0, 3, and 6 days of storage under fluorescent light at 2 °C. Addition of BRWE had no effect (P = .98) on pH. Incorporating BRWE in ground beef improved (P < .0001) redness compared with control. The addition of BRWE decreased (P < .0001) lipid oxidation compared with control during storage; while antioxidant capacity increased with the addition of extract. BRWE at 1.2% reduced (P = .007) aerobic microbial counts after 6 days of storage. These results suggested that BRWE could be used as a natural antioxidant in ground beef to limit lipid oxidation and discoloration.