Animals (Jul 2021)

Spray-Dried Plasma Improves Body Weight, Intestinal Barrier Function, and Tibia Strength during Experimental Constant Heat Stress Conditions

  • Jared Ruff,
  • Thaina L. Barros,
  • Joy Campbell,
  • Ricardo González-Esquerra,
  • Christine N. Vuong,
  • Sami Dridi,
  • Elizabeth S. Greene,
  • Xochitl Hernandez-Velasco,
  • Billy M. Hargis,
  • Guillermo Tellez-Isaias

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11082213
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 11, no. 8
p. 2213

Abstract

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The aim of this study was to see how spray-dried plasma (SDP) supplementation affected broiler chicken performance, intestinal permeability, and bone strength during persistent heat stress. One-day-old chicks (n = 480) were randomly assigned into twelve environmental corrals; four thermoneutral (TN-negative control, maintained at 24 °C from d 21–42); four heat stress (HS, exposed to 35 °C from d 21–42); and four heat stress treated with 2% SDP in the feed until d 28 followed by 1% SDP until d 42 (HS-SDP). The performance and serum levels of fluorescein isothiocyanate-dextran (FITC-d) were evaluated at d 21, 28, 35, and 42. The tibias strength was evaluated on d 21 and 42. The increment in chicken temperature (p p < 0.05). However, partially feeding SDP mitigated these adverse effects significantly. These findings imply that using SDP strategically during stressful times, such as prolonged heat stress, may help mitigate its negative consequences.

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