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. 2017 May 4;12(5):e0176309.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0176309. eCollection 2017.

Effect of dietary supplementation with Lactobacillus acidophilus D2/CSL (CECT 4529) on caecum microbioma and productive performance in broiler chickens

Alessandra De Cesare  1 , Federico Sirri  1 , Gerardo Manfreda  1 , Paola Moniaci  1 , Alberto Giardini  2 , Marco Zampiga  1 , Adele Meluzzi  1
Affiliations

Effect of dietary supplementation with Lactobacillus acidophilus D2/CSL (CECT 4529) on caecum microbioma and productive performance in broiler chickens

Alessandra De Cesare et al. PLoS One. .

Abstract

This study examines the effects of the dietary supplementation with Lactobacillus acidophilus D2/CSL (CECT 4529) (LA) on productive performances, incidence of foot pad dermatitis and caecum microbioma in broiler chickens. A total of 1,100 one-day old male Ross 308 chicks were divided into 2 groups of 16 replicates with 25 birds each and reared from 1-41 d. One group was fed a basal diet (CON) and the other group the same diet supplemented with LA. Caecum contents were collected from 4 selected birds at day one and 5 selected birds at the end of the rearing period. Then, they were submitted to DNA extraction and whole DNA shotgun metagenomic sequencing. Overall, the LA supplementation produced a significant beneficial effect on body weight gain between 15-28 d and improved feed conversion rate in the overall period. On the contrary, litter moisture, pH and incidence of the foot pad lesions were not affected by LA. Birds treated with LA showed a lower occurrence of pasty vent at both 14 and 28 d. At the end of the rearing period, Lachanospiraceae were significantly higher in LA birds in comparison to CON (17.07 vs 14.39%; P = 0.036). Moreover, Ruminococcus obeum, Clostridium clostridioforme, Roseburia intestinalis, Lachnospiraceae bacterium 14-2T and Coprococcus eutactus were significantly higher in LA birds in comparison to CON. The relative abundance of Lactobacillus acidophilus was comparable between LA and CON groups. However, a positive effect was observed in relation to the metabolic functions in the treated group, with particular reference to the higher abundance of β-glucosidase. In conclusion, the LA supplementation improved broiler productive performances and metabolic functions promoting animal health.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing Interests: The Centro Sperimentale del Latte does not alter our adherence to PLOS ONE policies on sharing data and materials.

Figures

Fig 1
Fig 1. Bird showing normal vent (on the left) or pasty vent (on the right).
Fig 2
Fig 2. Mean relative frequency of abundance (% abundance) of most represented bacterial classes in each of the 14 chickens tested (Day 1: Chicken ID 1–4; Control 41 days: Chicken ID 5–9; Treated 41 days: Chicken ID 10–14).
Fig 3
Fig 3. Bacterial species resulting significantly different in chickens treated with L. acidophilus (Treated) in comparison to the untreated birds (Control) at 41 days.
Fig 4
Fig 4. Mean relative frequency of abundance (% abundance) of the KEGG pathways in caeca of Day 1 chickens (Day 1) and in ceca of chickens treated with L. acidophilus (Treated) in comparison to the untreated birds (Control) at 41 days.
Fig 5
Fig 5. Mean relative frequency of abundance (% abundance) of the KEGG in caeca of day 1 chickens (Day 1) and in ceca of chickens treated with L. acidophilus (Treated) in comparison to the untreated birds (Control) at 41 days.
Fig 6
Fig 6. Mean relative frequency of abundance (% abundance) of the KEGG functions showing P < 0.05 between chickens treated with L. acidophilus (Treated) in comparison to the untreated birds (Control) at 41 days.
Fig 7
Fig 7. Mean relative frequency of abundance (% abundance) of the top 20 KEGG functions in each of the 14 chickens tested (Day 1: Chicken ID 1–4; Control 41 days: Chicken ID 5–9; Treated 41 days: Chicken ID 6–10).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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