The next frontier in nutrient management: Dr. Peter Spring

Over the past year, poultry production has faced all-time record high commodities, the most severe drought to hit the Midwest United States in 25 years and continual pressure to follow the European antibiotic growth promoter worldwide ban.  It seems the only constant component for layer, broiler and turkey operations this year, and maybe now even the most critical, is the continual goal to improve gut health and reach maximum performance in their flocks.

 

Gut health plays a vital role in poultry production. Only a healthy gut can digest and absorb the maximal amount of nutrients and get the most out of the diet. If the digestive system is compromised, its requirements for energy and protein increase sharply. This can severely diminish the nutrients available to the bird for growth and thus slow weight gain, leaving a plunge in feed efficiency. In addition, most intestinal challenges will lead to reduced feed intake that can further impact bird performance.

 

Decreased feed conversion rates and low weight gain are not the only side effects of gut health challenges. Poor intestinal health will increase moisture content of the excreta and therefore negatively affect litter conditions. This can augment the level of ammonia in the house and lead to more respiratory problems. Wet litter has also been shown to increase footpad dermatitis, hock burns, processing downgrades and more condemnations. Uneven flocks, runting and stunting, ruffled feathers, and an increased chance for mortality can occur as well.

 

Considering these implications of poor gut health and the challenges crops faced this year in the field, finding good feed sources has become even more important to poultry production. Poor feed quality will always negatively impact intestinal health and overall efficiency of the digestive tract. Recent data shows that some of the mycotoxins can weaken the intestinal barrier and thus increase the risk that invasive microbes such as Salmonella enteritis can more easily pass this wall and reach the blood stream. The extreme hot and dry growing season of 2012 is a precursor for Aspergillus, the mold responsible for aflatoxins. If the corn was further damaged or stressed by insects or hail, the chance for aflatoxin is greater.

 

With these repercussions, every operation should be fine tuning their gut flora management programs. This program includes seeding the gut with favorable organisms, preparing the environment, excluding pathogens, enhancing resilience, and decreasing feed passage. This involves applying a probiotic or competitive exclusion product as soon after hatch as possible. In the absence of antibiotics, a key factor in maintaining an optimal gut microflora is to control the flow of nutrients down the GI tract. Diet digestibility should be maximized by ingredient choice and enzyme use, thus avoiding excessive substrate for bacterial growth. Also we need to consider the use of an appropriate organic acid in the diet and drinking water. With water application, critical phases such as brooding or later in production when the risk for necrotic enteritis is particularly high can be specifically addressed. Lastly, the gut flora management program should include blocking the attachment mechanism of unfavorable organisms with a type-1 fimbria blocker and thereby reducing their ability to contend with favorable organisms in the gut.

 

Recently, new data has become available on a natural carbohydrate fraction isolated from a specific strain of yeast that has been shown to block unfavorable organisms from the gut. This carbohydrate has demonstrated that it supports nutrient utilization, maintains digestive function and enzyme activity, controlled inflammation and reduces the gap between ideal and actual performance. These mechanisms are backed by nutrigenomics research.

 

Nutrigenomics enables the detection and measurement of the change in expression of several thousand genes in the bird all at the same time, in response to a feed product or diet, thus allowing a far more comprehensive understanding of how a concept affects the metabolism and health of the bird. Among the many changes in gene expression observed, the carbohydrate regulated intestinal enzyme production, reduced cell cycling and heat shock protein production when tested in a challenge model with increased intestinal viscosity.

 

Dr. Danny Hooge recently completed a meta analysis of the existing published broiler performance trials using this carbohydrate fraction and calculated, compared to a negative control diet, 129 g higher body weight, 4.5 points improvement in feed conversion ration and 0.76 percent reduced mortality. (Hooge, D. (2011). Meta-Analysis Summary of Broiler Chicken Trials with Dietary Actigen® (2009-2011) International Journal of Poultry Science 10 (10): 819-824.)

 

A new frontier is being reached in poultry production with increased feed prices and a global movement to antibiotic restrictions. A healthy digestive tract is the new “West” to be conquered and the only way a bird can reach its genetic potential. Poultry operations need to optimize the basics of hygiene, management and feed programs to properly take care of the gut microflora while looking toward new technologies to improve gut health, feed efficiency and maximize performance.