ABSTRACT
Control of intestinal pathogens during the earliest phases of broiler production may be the best strategy for the reduction of human pathogens on processed broiler carcasses. The recent ban on antibiotics in poultry feed has served to focus much attention on alternative methods of controlling the gastrointestinal microflora. A field trial was conducted to evaluate the effect of the fructan-rich Jerusalem artichoke, or topinambur (administered as 0.5% topinambur syrup in drinking water), on cultural numbers of selected cecal bacteria (total aerobes, Enterobacteriaceae, Bdellovibrio spp., and Clostridium perfringens) and levels of bacterial endotoxins as well as on body weights and relative weights of organs (the pancreas and the bursa of Fabricius) of chickens in the first 35 days of life (with weekly investigations being conducted). One-day-old broiler chickens (Ross 308) were randomly assigned to experimental (with topinambur) and control (without topinambur) groups. They were allowed free access to a standard broiler diet without growth-promoting antibiotics. Topinambur treatment resulted in a significant increase (P < 0.01) in cecal counts of B. bacteriovorus, which parasitizes susceptible gram-negative pathogens. Topinambur led to significantly smaller numbers of total aerobes, Enterobacteriaceae, and C. perfringens as well as to reduced levels of endotoxins in the blood compared with those for control birds. Increased body weights resulting from topinambur consumption were observed on day 35 of the trial period (P < 0.05). The relative weights of the pancreas and the bursa of Fabricius, however, were higher (P < 0.05) for topinambur-treated broilers than for control birds at the ages of 14, 21, 28, and 35 days. These results indicate that a small amount of topinambur in broilers' drinking water has a beneficial effect on growth performance, reduces bacterial endotoxin levels, and suppresses potential pathogens in broilers' ceca.
