Background: Due to its side effects, antibiotic feed additives have become a real public health concern and trigger an explosion of interest in the use of alternatives such as plants products as supplements in animal rations. This study was designed to assess the effects of Afrostyrax lepidophyllus fruit and bark powder on growth performances and serological parameters of broiler chickens.

Methods: A total of 240 day-old Cobb 500 strain chicks were randomly assigned to five experimental diets formulated from a negative control ration (R0- ) by adding 1g antibiotic (Doxycycline®) which served as a positive control (R0+), 2g of powder from the fruit (F), 2g of the bark powder (B) and 2g of the mixture (1/1) of fruit and bark (FB) of Afrostyrax lepidophyllus in a kg of basal diet.

Results: During growing-finishing phase (22-49 days) and throughout the study period (1-49 days), feed intake (FI), and live body weight (LBW) and body weight gain (BWG) were significantly higher with A. lepidophyllus bark powder as compared to the negative control diet. Irrespective to the study phase, A. lepidophyllus bark’s powder and antibiotic induced the highest FI and the highest BWG, while the lowest BWG was recorded the A. lepidophyllus fruit-bark mixture. Gain/food ratio and abdominal fat deposit did not vary with the inclusion of A. lepidophyllus fruit, back and their mixture in the ration. The lowest cost of production was recorded with the ration supplemented with Afrostyrax lepidophyllus bark powder.

Conclusions: The study clearly showed that 2g/kg Afrostyrax lepidophyllus’s bark can replace antibiotics in the ration to promote growth performances and reduce the cost of production of broiler chickens in the finisher phase.

Kana JR, Mube Kuietche H, Ngouana Tadjong R Yangoue A, Komguep R et al. (2017) Growth Performance and Serum Biochemical Profile of Broiler Chickens Fed on Diets Supplemented with Afrostyrax lepidophyllus Fruit and Bark as Alternative to Antibiotic Growth Promoters. J Vet Med Res 4(6): 1095.

•    Afrostyrax lepidophyllus
•    Antibiotic
•    Broiler chickens
•    Growth performance
•    Feed additive
•    Serological parameters

In Africa, farmers are generally faced with the challenge of improving livestock performances in order to ensure more net returns and cover the proteins needs of populations. A lot of research and production strategies have been developed, including the use of antibiotics as feed additives to achieve this aim [1]. Although antibiotics achieved good performances, their potential side effects have become a real public health concern [2,3]. This triggers an explosion of interest in the use of naturals and non synthetics alternatives such as herbs, spices and their products (phytobiotics) as supplements in animal rations [4,5].

Phytobiotics contain active secondary plant metabolites belonging to the classes of isoprene derivatives, flavonoides and glucosinolates, and a large number of these compounds have been suggested to act as antibiotics or as antioxidants [6,7]. Beneficial effects of these products in farm animal arises from activation of feed intake and secretion of digestive secretions, immune stimulation, anti-bacterial, coccidiostatic, anthelmintic, antiviral or anti-inflammatory activity and antioxidant properties [8]. Previous studies revealed that ginger (Zingiber officinale), garlic (Allium sativum), and scent leaf (Ocimun gratissimun) and porridge fruit (Tetrapleura tetraptera) contain active substances such as alkaloids, tannins, flavonoids, saponins and phenols compounds [9-11]. Those compounds are known to improve livestock performances through their anti-oxidative and antimicrobial action, improve palatability, reduce cholesterol level in eggs and meat and maintain gut equilibrium [12].

Afrostyrax lepidophyllus fruits and bark are popular spices in Cameroon and most African countries. Fongang et al. [13], revealed that A. lepidophyllus bark contains sulfur and phenylpropanoid (eugenol) which have the ability to stimulate the function of pancreatic enzymes (lipases, amylases and proteases) and increase the activity of digestive enzymes of gastric mucosa. Both bark and fruits contain polyphenolics compounds possessing significant antioxidant properties [10,14,15] with many other attributes including digestive enzymes stimulation, lipid metabolism and modulation of microbial populations [8]. Fongang et al. [13], also reported that some compounds found in A. lepidophyllus bark like eugenol methyl, limonene, β-ocimene, apinene, trithiapentane, methyl-trithiahexane, dimethyltetrathiaoctane, and pentathiaundecane are not present in the fruits.

Many studies have concluded that combination of individual spices with different active compounds has a greater antibacterial effect than individual’s spice alone, indicating a synergy between spices of different composition and origin [6,16]. Based on the chemical composition of the Afrostyrax lepidophyllus fruits and bark, their ability to balance biota population in gut and digestive enzyme stimulation as revealed by previous studies [6,15], we believe that this spice characterized mostly by the volatile sulfurcontaining compounds [13] which are known to stimulate appetite and digestion [6] could positively impact other physiological functions, help to ensure good health and welfare, what can positively affect growth performances of broiler. We also believe based on the diversity of actives compounds found in fruits (phenols, tetrathiaoctane, pentathiadecane, trithiahexane and hydrolysable tannins) and bark (sulfur-containing compounds mainly: eugenol methyl, flavonoïds, phenylpropanoïd…) that their antibacterial and growth promoting effect could be more significant when combined. Thus the objective of the present study was to determine the effect of Afrostyrax lepidophyllus fruit and bark as antibiotic substitute on the growth performance and biochemical profile of broiler chickens.

Site of study

The study was conducted at the poultry unit of the Teaching and Research Farm of the University of Dschang, Cameroon. This farm is located at 5° 26? North and 10° 26? EST and at an altitude of 1420 m above sea level. Annual temperatures vary between 10° C and 25° C. Rainfall ranges from 1500-2000 mm per annum over a 9 months rainy season (March to November).

Birds, dietary treatments and experimental design

240 day old Cobb 500 strain broiler chicks were reared on wood shaving litter floor at density of 20/m2 and 10/m2 respectively in brooding and finishing phase. There were randomly assigned to the five treatment diets including negative control diet in a completely randomized design with 48 birds per treatment. Each group was further sub divided into 4 replicates of 12 birds each (6 males and 6 females). The chicks were vaccinated against Newcastle diseases and Infectious Bursal Disease on day 7 and 18. Chicks were weighed at the beginning of the experiment and on weekly basis thereafter using a digital kitchen scale (SF-400 SF-400A, Capacity 7000g, Division 0.1-1g, China). Feed and water were offered ad libitum.

The fruit and the bark of Afrostyrax lepidophyllus were bought at the local market then ground, sieved and the powder was incorporated in broiler feed. Antibiotic used (Doxycycline®) in positive control ration was bought from a local veterinary pharmacy. Four experimental diets were formulated by adding in a kg of basal ration (R0-) (Table 1), 1g antibiotic (R0+) (Doxycycline®); 2g fruit powder (F), 2g bark powder (B) and 2g mixture of fruits + bark (FB) of A. lepidophyllus.

Growth

Feed intake (FI) was obtained by calculation at weekly intervals by difference in the quantity of feed distributed during the week and the left over for each replicate. Life body weight (BW) for each replicate was recorded weekly; BWG was obtained by difference in BW of two consecutive weeks. Gain/ food ration was obtained by dividing weekly FI by weekly BWG. The mortalities recorded during the first week of the experiment were replaced by new chicks of the same size and weight; from week 2 till the end of the experiment no mortality was recorded. At the end of the feeding trial at 49 days, 16 chickens from the 4 replicates (2 males and 2 females per replicate) of each treatment groups were randomly selected, fasted for 24 hours and slaughtered for carcass evaluation.

Serum biochemical analysis

Blood from each slaughtered bird was collected for biochemical analysis. This blood was collected in non-heparinised test tubes and left at rest during 12 hours, and the serum was collected and preserved in the freezer. Serum biochemical analysis consisted of the quantification of total protein, urea, creatinine, aspartate aminotransferase (ASAT) and alanine aminotransferase (ALAT) using colorimetric method as prescribed by the Chronolab® commercial kits.

Cost of production The cost of a kg of feed was calculated based on the price of each ingredient as practiced in the local market. The cost of feed intake was obtained by multiplying the average feed intake by the price of a kg of the corresponding diet. The cost of production of a kilogram of live body weight was calculated by multiplying the cost of the kg of feed by the corresponding feed conversion ratio.

Statistical analysis The results on growth parameters, carcass characteristics and biochemical profile obtained from each replicate were expressed as means and used for statistical analysis. The data were analyzed using one way Analyses of Variance test by General Linear Model’s procedure of Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS 21.0) software. Significant treatment means were separated using Duncan’s multiple range tests and probability values less than 0.05 were considered as significant [17].

Table 1: Proximate nutrients composition and price of experimental diets.

Performances and carcass traits Table 2 summarizes the effects of Afrostyrax lepidophyllus fruits, bark and their mixture on feed intake (FI), live body weight (BW), body weight gain (BWG) and the gain/food ratio. All these parameters were significantly affected (P<0.05) by the treatments, except for FI and gain/food ratio during the brooding phase (1-21 days).

During growing-finishing phase (22-49 days) and throughout the study period (1-49 days), the lowest FI was recorded with A. lepidophyllus fruits powder (RF) and the highest with the bark powder of this spice (RE). During the whole trial period, the consumption of the rations supplemented with the fruits and the fruits-bark mixture were comparable (P>0.05).

Irrespective of study phases, the highest BW and BWG were recorded with the antibiotic (R0 + ) as compared to the mixture of A. lepidophyllus fruits-bark (RFE) and the control ration without supplement (R0- ) during the growing phase and all over the study period. During the growing phase (22 to 49 days), birds fed on diets supplemented with antibiotic and A. lepidophyllus bark were comparable (P>0.05) for BW and BWG. In the same way, there was no significant difference (P>0.05) between BW and BWG of animals fed on control diet without supplement (R0- ) and those fed on diet supplemented with the mixture of A. lepidophyllus fruits-bark, and between chickens fed on diets supplemented with the antibiotic and the mixture of bark and fruits of Afrostyrax lepidophyllus. During the growing phase (22- 49 days) and throughout the experimental period (1-49 days) antibiotic induced the lowest gain/food ratio whereas the highest value was recorded with the negative control ration without supplement.

The carcass characteristics of broiler birds fed on diets supplemented with A. lepidophilus fruits and bark are presented in Table 3. There were substantial variations within each parameter from one treatment to another (P<0.05) except for abdominal fat. A. lepidophyllus fruits powder promoted a significantly (P<0.05) lower carcass yield as compared to antibiotic. The smallest relative weight of the liver was recorded with the antibiotic as compared to the bark powder of A. lepidophyllus which induced the heaviest liver. The fruits and the bark powder of this phytobiotic respectively induced the highest relative weights of the heart and the pancreas (P<0.05) as compared to all other treatments.

Cost of production Throughout the study period, the highest (P<0.05) costs of feed intake and cost of production of a kilogram of live body weight were recorded with the antibiotic (R0+ ). The lowest production cost of a kilogram of the live body weight during growing phase (22 to 49 days) and throughout the experimental period (1 to 49 days) was recorded with the bark and fruits of A. lepidophyllus (Table 4).

Serum biochemical parameters Proteins and urea serum contents were not significantly affected by antibiotic and phytobiotics. Creatinine, ALAT and ASAT concentrations significantly (P<0.05) increased with A. lepidophyllus fruits, antibiotic and A. lepidophyllus back respectively (Table 5). The phytobiotic bark and the mixture of bark and fruits supplement decreased the creatinine contents of blood serum as compared to negative (R0-), positive (R0+) control and fruits powder. The lowest ASAT content was recorded with antibiotic whereas the highest (P<0.05) value was recorded with A. lepidophyllus bark powder. The supplementation of broiler diet with antibiotic induced the lowest (P<0.05) ASAT serum content whereas the highest value was recorded with A. lepidophyllus bark powder (RE).

Table 2: Effects of Afrostyrax lepidophyllus on growth performances of broiler chickens.

The present result revealed that the feed intake of broilers increased with A. lepidophyllus bark powder as compared to the fruits and their combinations. This increase in feed intake could be attributed to the improvement of diet flavor by the volatile fractions of A. lepidophyllus bark [18] made up by the sulfurcontaining compounds which provided the garlic- or onion-like odor to the feed [13]. This flavor might have stimulated the appetite of the chickens. The absence of these compounds in the fruits can explain the difference recorded in feed intake in the present study. Sadji et al. [19] reported that good flavor of feed prepare the digestive tract to feed intake through stimulation of digestive secretions and intestine motility. The variation in feed intake in this study could also be explained by the variability and the complexity of actives compounds found in the fruits and bark. In fact, in the same plant the type and the amount of actives compounds found in leaves differed from compounds found in the twigs, bark and fruits [13]. The properties of spices identified so far are extremely varied and their main active compounds made up mainly by terpenoids and phenolics acids [20,21] produced a wide range of beneficial effects on growth performances traits in chickens which can be enhanced through synergetic effects with other compounds of different composition and origin.

Due to the wide variety and amount of active compounds, different herbs and spices affect digestion process and growth performance differently [6]. In the present study, supplementing broiler chickens with fruits and bark powder of A. lepidophyllus markedly enhanced BW and BWG as compared to negative control and their combination. This result can be explained by the presence of the anti-oxidative and antimicrobial [12] substances such as alkaloids, flavonoids and phenolics compounds [10,11] which are known to maintain gut equilibrium and improve growth performances of chickens [6]. The fruits-bark combination (1/1) felt to enhance growth performances as expected suggesting a negative synergistic effect between active compounds found in A. lepidophyllus fruits and bark. The previous study of Fongang et al. [13] based on the phytochemicals screening of this spice revealed that many compounds found in bark like eugenol methyl, limonene, β-ocimene, apinene, trithiapentane, methyltrithiahexane, dimethyl-tetrathiaoctane, and pentathiaundecane are not present in the fruits, and compounds like tetrathiaoctane, pentathiadecane, trithiahexane, hydrolysable tannins present in the fruits are absent in the bark. The present result could also be explained by the low amount (1/2) of individual active compounds in the combination (1/1) which was half the amount found in the rations supplemented with fruits or bark alone.

Body weight of chickens fed on diets supplemented with antibiotic and A. lepidophyllus bark were comparable and significantly higher than the BW recorded with the fruits alone and the fruits-bark mixture. The improvement in BW recorded with bark could be attributed to the antimicrobial properties of their specifics active compounds and their impact on gut function [22]. In fact, the bark of this spice contains flavonoïds and phenylpropanoids compounds not present in the fruits; which are known to improve livestock performances by changing the intestinal ecosystem of the animal through their antimicrobial action [12]. These compounds act by forming the complexes with many proteins, cause the destructuration of the bacterial membranes, making unavailable certain substrates for the bacteria and inactivate bacterial enzymes [6]. The changes in intestinal ecosystem due to their antimicrobial action could lead to a greater availability of some nutriments for the host and consequently improve BWG. This is in agreement with Franki? et al. [6], who noticed that the growth promoting effect of most herbs and extracts of spices act by killing parasites that hinder digestibility and growth performance of birds. Moreover, it was reported by Nain et al. [23], that the animals selected for their rapid growth, like broiler suffered from a significant oxidative stress. The improvement in BW of broilers achieved with bark of A. lepidophyllus could also be attributed to the potent antioxidant properties of their major components as reported by Fongang et al. [13], and Moukette et al. [15].

Although not significant, A. lepidophyllus fruits and bark tend to reduce gain/food ratio compared to the control diet. This could be attributed to the higher weight gain recorded in birds fed on diets supplemented with fruits and bark. Windisch et al. [24], reported that incorporating phytobiotics in the rations improved intestinal health, and animals are less exposed to microbial toxins and other undesired microbial metabolites such as ammonia and biogenic amines. As a result, animals are relatively relieved from immune defense stress during critical situations and there is increased availability of essential nutrients for absorption, thereby helping the animals to grow better within the framework of their genetic potential. Al-Kassie et al. [20], also provided an evidence of the enhancement of gain/food ratio through the dietary addition of Capsicum annum which contain active substances such as alkaloids, flavonoids and phenolics compounds found in A. lepidophyllus used in the present study.

Within the framework of this study, supplementing broilers feed with A. lepidophyllus fruits and bark did not have any marked effect on the carcass yield as compared to the control diet without any supplement. This could be attributed to the low quantity (2g/kg of feed) of supplements used in this study. The present findings contradict the results of Al-Kassie et al. [20], who reported that some common spices containing the same active substances like flavonoids and phenolics compounds present in A. lepidophyllus such as green pepper (Capsicum annum) at 0.5; 0.75 and 1% in the ration significantly increased the carcass yield of broiler chickens. The difference with the present findings could be explained by the high quantities of green pepper (0.5; 0.75 and 1%) compared to the 0.2% of A. lepidophyllus fruits and bark used in the present study.

Biological effects of active compounds in the plants depend on their amount which varies depending on the variety of plant. This preliminary study on feeding A. lepidophyllus fruits and bark, and their 1/1 mixture to broiler chickens revealed no significant effect on the relative weights of liver and heart as compared to the control diet. This result suggest that the amount of the secondary metabolites or active compounds contained in 2g of fruits and bark of A. lepidophyllus in a kg of feed are not toxic to chickens. The present results are close to the findings of Uno [25] who revealed that feeding 0.25% of the gingember, garlic and the gingember-garlic mixture to broiler chickens have no significant effect on the relative weight of the liver and the heart.

In the present study, the A. lepidophyllus bark powder markedly increased relative weight of the pancreas as compared to the control ration. This finding might suggest that pancreas released more enzymes with A. lepidophyllus bark powder in the ration. A number of reports have also provided evidence of the enhancement of digestive enzyme secretion through the dietary addition of herbs, spices and their products [5,8,26,27].

The effects of active compounds from herbs and spices depend largely on dosage used. Incorporating 2g of fruits and bark, and the fruits-bark mixture of A. lepidophyllus powder in a kg of feed did not have any significant effect on the abdominal fat deposit. However, Muneendra et al. [8], reported that A. lepidophyllus bark and fruits contain polyphenolics and flavonoids compounds possessing a significant attributes on digestive enzymes stimulation and lipid metabolism. In the present study the effect of polyphenolics and flavonoids was not significant on fat deposit, may be due to their low content since they are not the major active compounds found in this spice.

Spices are not only appetite and digestion stimulants, they impact on other physiological functions that can help to sustain good health and improve animal performance. The biochemical values obtained in this study indicated no detrimental impact of A. lepidophyllus bark and fruits, and their combination on serum content in total protein, creatinin, urea, ALAT and ASAT. In fact, the A. lepidophyllus bark and the fruits-bark combination markedly decreased the serum content in creatinin. This decrease in creatinin content can be attributed to the active compounds present in A. lepidophyllus bark and fruits on the glomerular function of chickens. The fruits and fruits-bark mixture led to a marked variation in the serum content of ALAT within the references range (5-25 IU/L) without however affecting the content of ASAT. This result is in contradiction with the findings of Al-Shuwaili et al. [21], which revealed that the addition of ginger, garlic and cinnamon in the ration of the turkeys lowers the serum content in ALAT and ASAT.

Table 3: Carcass characteristics of broilers fed on diets supplemented with fruit and bark of A. lepidophilus powder.

Table 4: Costs of production of broiler fed on diets supplemented with A. lepidiphillus.

Table 5: Serum biochemical parameters of broilers fed on diets supplemented with fruit and bark of A. lepidophyllus.

The results of this study suggest that supplementing broilers diet with Afrostyrax lepidophyllus bark indicate favorable influences on growth performance, blood serum components and reduced the cost of production. The present findings provided a ray of hope to the natural alternative to the antibiotic additives that are still commonly and very intensively used in animal husbandry in tropical area where climate conditions are very suitable for microbial growth.

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