ABSTRACT
Background and Aims: Non-therapeutic antibiotic use is associated with the current decrease in antibiotic therapeutic efficiency and the emergence of a wide range of resistant strains, which constitutes a public health risk. This study aimed to evaluate the use of Saccharomyces cerevisiae var. boulardii RC009 as a nutritional feed additive to substitute the prophylactic use of antibiotics and improve the productive performance and health of post-weaning piglets. Materials and Methods: Four regular nutritional phases were prepared. Post-weaning pigs (21-70 days old) received one of two dietary treatments: T1-basal diet (BD-control group) with in-feed antibiotics as a prophylactic medication (one pulse of Tiamulin in P3 and one pulse of Amoxicillin in P4); and T2-BD without in-feed antibiotics but with Saccharomyces boulardii RC009 (1 × 1012 colony forming unit/T feed). The feed conversion ratio (FCR), total weight gain (TWG-kg), and daily weight gain (DWG-kg) were determined. A post-weaning growth index (GI) was calculated and animals (160 days old) from each treatment were analyzed at the abattoir after sacrifice for carcass weight and respiratory tract lesions. Results: Pigs consuming probiotics had higher TWG and DWG than the control group. The group of animals with low body weight obtained the same results. Saccharomyces boulardii administration decreased diarrhea, and FCR reduction was related to a GI improvement. A significant increase in carcass weight and muscle thickness reduction was observed in animals received the probiotic post-weaning. Conclusion: Saccharomyces boulardii RC009, a probiotic additive, was found to improve the production parameters of pigs post-weaning and enhance their health status, indicating that it may be a promising alternative to prophylactic antibiotics.
ABSTRACT
The objective was to evaluate the effect of two probiotic yeast strains (Saccharomyces. cerevisiae RC016 and Kluyveromyces marxianus VM004) as a substitute of growth promoter antibiotics on health status and productive parameters in weaned piglets. Commercial line hybrid piglets (Choice n=200), weaned at 21 d age were allotted by sex, and assigned in 4 pens per treatment (2 pens males and 2 pens females), 10 pigs per pen divided into 2 blocks (with or without antibiotics). Dietary treatments included a basal diet (BD) supplemented with probiotic Saccharomyces cerevisiae RC016 and Kluyveromyces marxianus VM004 (100 g, 1 × 1010 CFU/g, respectively), with or without antibiotics, mixed per ton of growth phases diets. Pigs were fed ad libitum with treatments T1) BD with antibiotics (BD); T2) BD with antibiotics + Saccharomyces cerevisiae; T3) BD without antibiotics + Saccharomyces cerevisiae; T4) BD with antibiotics + Kluyveromyces marxianus; T5) BD without antibiotics + Kluyveromyces marxianus. The effects on respiratory tract clinometry, carcass quality, organs weight, blood haematology and productive parameters were evaluated. When clinical signs occurred (diarrhoea, stomach ulcers, respiratory signs), they decreased with both probiotics addition, mainly Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The productive parameters promotion by both probiotics was similar than that using antibiotics. The probiotics inclusion increased the carcass weight and significantly reduced the lumbar fat thickness (P ≤ 0.05). Supplementation with both probiotics demonstrated their ability to substitute the antibiotics use on clinometry, carcass quality and on the productive parameters promotion of weaned piglets.
ABSTRACT
The present study was conducted to investigate the ability of Saccharomyces cerevisiae RC016 (Sc)-based feed additive to reduce liver toxicity, residual aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) levels and influence intestinal structure in broiler chickens fed chronic aflatoxin B1-contaminated diets. A total of 100 one-day-old male commercial line (Ross) broiler chickens were divided into 4 treatments, with 5 pens per treatment and 5 broiler chickens per pen. Birds were randomly assigned to 4 treatments, which were namely treatment 1 (T1), control diet (CD); T2, CD + Sc at 1 g/kg; T3, CD + AFB1 at 100 µg/kg; T4, CD + Sc at 1 g/kg + AFB1 at 100 µg/kg. The liver histopathology of broiler chickens fed diets with AFB1 showed diffused microvacuolar fatty degeneration. The addition of Sc showed normal hepatocytes similar to the control. The small intestine villi from AFB1 group showed atrophy, hyperplasia of goblet cells, prominent inflammatory infiltrate and oedema. In contrast, the small intestine villi from birds that received the yeast plus AFB1 showed an absence of inflammatory infiltrate, and atrophy; moreover, a lower number of goblet cells compared to the groups with AFB1 was observed. The morphometric intestine studies showed that a significant decrease (P < 0.05) in the crypt depth values when Sc was applied to AFB1-contaminated diets. Although the intestinal villus height and apparent adsorption area did not show significant differences (P > 0.05), there was a tendency to improve these parameters. The residual levels of AFB1 in livers were significantly reduced (P < 0.05) in the presence of the yeast. The present work demonstrated that the addition of Sc alone or in combination with AFB1 in the broiler chicken diets had a beneficial effect in counteracting the toxic effects of AFB1 in livers besides improving the histomorphometric parameters and modulating the toxic effect of AFB1 in the intestine.
