Effects of dietary marine microalgae Schizochytrium limacinum on natural humoral immunity of broiler chickens

Lilyan Sotirov, Stefan Denev, Sachka Chobanova, Nadya Bozakova, Кatya Velichkova, Toncho Dinev and Tsvetoslav Koinarski

Abstract: The aim of the study was to evaluate the effect of dehydrated whole cell dietary marine microalgae Schizochytrium limacinum on natural humoral immunity of broiler chickens, including serum lysozyme concentrations, alternative pathway of complement activation, beta (β) lysine, alfa (IFN-α) and gamma (IFN-γ) interferons. The first completely randomised experimental design included 90 (ninety) and the second – 120 (one hundred twenty) one day-old Ross 308 male broiler chickens that were obtained from a local commercial hatchery. Upon arrival, all chickens were individually weighted, wing-banded, and assigned randomly in three (Experiment 1) and fourth (Experiment 2) groups respectively, with three subgroups (replicates) of thirty birds each. They were housed in separate pens into wire type experimental cages that were placed in an environmentally controlled experimental poultry house. All experimental basal diets were formulated to meet or exceed broiler chick’s nutritional requirements. The microalgae used in this study was a dehydrated, whole-cell Schizochytrium limacinum CCAP 4087/2, as a source of highly unsaturated fatty acids (DHA and EPA), supplemented with low and moderate doses. Water and feed were provided ad libitum throughout the experiments. The trials were terminated when the broiler chickens were 42 day of age. On the base of obtained results we can conclude that marine microalgae Schizochytrium limacinum, supplemented with low and moderate dietary doses, don’t alter immune functions of tested indices in broiler chickens and even increase them after six weeks of treatment.

Keywords: broiler chickens; marine microalgae; natural humoral immunity; Schizochytrium limacinum

Date published: 2021-02-25