Effect of zinc bacitracin and salinomycin on intestinal microflora and performance of broilers
Open Access
- 1 September 2000
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Elsevier BV in Poultry Science
- Vol. 79 (9), 1311-1319
- https://doi.org/10.1093/ps/79.9.1311
Abstract
A feeding experiment was carried out over 42 d with four groups of broiler chickens fed experimental diets formulated to provide no supplementation, 20 mg zinc bacitracin, 60 mg salinomycin, or both feed additives in combination. During the fifth week of the experiment, four chickens from each pen were killed, and the contents of gizzard, duodenum, jejunum, ileum, ceca, and rectum were separately collected and pooled. In all intestinal segments, the pH and the concentration of lactic acid were measured, and the numbers of anaerobic bacteria, coliforms, lactic acid bacteria, lactobacilli, enterococci, and Clostridium perfringens were counted. In homogenates of pancreas obtained from four animals, the activities of amylase, lipase, trypsin, and chymotrypsin were measured. A significant growth-promoting effect was observed in the group receiving zinc bacitracin in combination with salinomycin. Zinc bacitracin significantly reduced the number of coliform bacteria in the ileum and increased the activities of amylase and lipase in pancreas homogenates. Supplementation with salinomycin and zinc bacitracin, alone or in combination, resulted in significantly lower counts of C. perfringens as well as Lactobacillus salivarius, which was a dominant lactic acid bacterium found in broiler intestinal contents. High numbers of these lactobacilli may play a role in broiler growth depression related to competition in nutrient uptake or impaired fat absorption due to bile acid deconjugation.Keywords
This publication has 29 references indexed in Scilit:
- Specific detection ofSerpulina hyodysenteriaeand potentially pathogenic weakly β-haemolytic porcine intestinal spirochetes by polymerase chain reaction targeting 23S rDNAMolecular and Cellular Probes, 1997
- The influence of dietary fibre source and level on the development of the gastrointestinal tract, digestibility and energy metabolism in broiler chickensBritish Journal of Nutrition, 1996
- Susceptibility of Poultry Lactobacilli to Ionophore AntibioticsJournal of Veterinary Medicine, Series B, 1995
- Simultaneous Kinetic Determinations of Lipase, Chymotrypsin, Trypsin, Elastase, and Amylase on the Same Microtiter PlatePancreas, 1993
- The effect of growth‐promoting antibiotics on the faecal enterococci of healthy young chickensJournal of Applied Bacteriology, 1988
- Secretion of Pancreatic Lipase and Colipase from Rat PancreasPancreas, 1987
- Observations on thein vitrosensitivity and resistance of Gram positive intestinal bacteria of farm animals to growth promoting antimicrobial agentsJournal of Applied Bacteriology, 1984
- The Influence of Specific Bacteria and a Filterable Agent on the Growth of Gnotobiotic ChicksJournal of Applied Bacteriology, 1979
- The Occurence and Properties of Uric Acid Decomposing Anaerobic Bacteria in the Avian CaecumJournal of Applied Bacteriology, 1974
- A comparision of the growth of chicks in the Gustafsson germ-free apparatus and in a conventional environment, with and without dietary supplements of penicillinBritish Journal of Nutrition, 1963