Academic literature on the topic 'Broilers (Poultry) – Experiments'

AbstractBoth poultry meat and eggs provide high-quality animal protein [containing sufficient amounts and proper ratios of amino acids (AAs)] for human consumption and, therefore, play an important role in the growth, development, and health of all individuals. Because there are growing concerns about the suboptimal efficiencies of poultry production and its impact on environmental sustainability, much attention has been paid to the formulation of low-protein diets and precision nutrition through the addition of low-cost crystalline AAs or alternative sources of animal-protein feedstuffs. This necessitates a better understanding of AA nutrition and metabolism in chickens. Although historic nutrition research has focused on nutritionally essential amino acids (EAAs) that are not synthesized or are inadequately synthesized in the body, increasing evidence shows that the traditionally classified nutritionally nonessential amino acids (NEAAs), such as glutamine and glutamate, have physiological and regulatory roles other than protein synthesis in chicken growth and egg production. In addition, like other avian species, chickens do not synthesize adequately glycine or proline (the most abundant AAs in the body but present in plant-source feedstuffs at low content) relative to their nutritional and physiological needs. Therefore, these two AAs must be sufficient in poultry diets. Animal proteins (including ruminant meat & bone meal and hydrolyzed feather meal) are abundant sources of both glycine and proline in chicken nutrition. Clearly, chickens (including broilers and laying hens) have dietary requirements for all proteinogenic AAs to achieve their maximum productivity and maintain optimum health particularly under adverse conditions such as heat stress and disease. This is a paradigm shift in poultry nutrition from the 70-year-old “ideal protein” concept that concerned only about EAAs to the focus of functional AAs that include both EAAs and NEAAs.

The purpose of this chapter was to study the influence of humic substances on the formation of the safety and quality of poultry meat. The high abilities of the natural and organic complex of humic acids “Reasil®HumicHealth” (produced in Russia, Saratov) to sorb and desorb five mycotoxins of compound feed (aflatoxin B1, ochratoxin, toxin T-2, zearalenone and fuminisin B1) were experimentally established. The hepatoprotective ability of humic acids was observed in experiments on broilers using rapeseed meal containing an increased amount of secondary plant metabolites that could cause liver damage. It was found out that the inclusion of humic acids in the amount of 1 and 1.5 g per 1 kg of feed to the main diet of broiler chickens has a more stable positive effect, both in terms of slaughter indicators (yield of semieviscerated carcasses and carcasses of complete evisceration), and in the production of the most valuable natural semi-finished products (breast, chicken legs) due to the intensive growth of muscle tissue. A clear improvement in the morpho-biochemical and immunological parameters of blood and micromorphometric characteristics of the organs of the immune system of poultry was noted with the use of different concentrations of humic acid salts. The use of the additive at the rate of 1 and 1.5 g per 1 kg of feed does not negatively affect the sensory indicators of finished culinary products.

In intensive production, freshly hatched cockerels are culled in the layer hatchery (7 billion males each year), On the other hand, for meat production rearing female birds has not economic benefits because of male broiler chicks have a faster growth rate and better feed efficiency than females. In this regards several methods are being developed for sex determination in the chick embryo during the incubation period. But these methods need to be rapid, cost-efficient, and suitable practical for commercial use. Additionally, sex determination should be done before pain perception has evolved in