Nutritional metabolic diseases of poultry and disorders of the biological antioxidant defence system

Abstract

Deficiencies or disturbances of nutrition cause a variety of diseases and can arise in different ways. The amount of a particular nutrient in the diet may be insufficient to meet the requirements, the diet may contain substances that inactivate the nutrient or inhibit its absorption/utilisation, or metabolism may be upset by the interaction of dietary and environmental factors. Peroxidation of lipids or oxygen free radical generation in general is a physiological process important for cell metabolism, division and differentiation and also for the biosynthesis of hormones and prostaglandins. Free radicals generated through these processes are effectively scavenged by the antioxidant defence system. Uncontrolled lipid oxidation caused by disturbances of that system may play a crucial role in some important poultry diseases and toxicoses. The first route of lipid peroxide loading of the organism is via the feed, such as through oxidised lipids. Oxidised fatty acids are absorbed from the intestine mainly in the form of unsaturated keto compounds and initiate lipid peroxidation in the tissues. The second problem is the insufficient amount of antioxidants in the feed, e.g. vitamin E deficiency. Nutritional encephalomalacia is a problem in poultry production which depends both on the actual vitamin E supply and the dietary amount of polyunsaturated fatty acids. In young birds the primary target of vitamin E deficiency is the brain because it contains low amounts of vitamin E, and the vitamin E content of the liver acting as store decreases rapidly during the first week of life. Besides vitamin E, other components of the antioxidant system, e.g. the antioxidant enzymes (catalase and glutathione peroxidase) also have low activity in the brain as compared to other major tissues. The brain is highly susceptible to oxidative stress because of the accumulation of polyunsaturated fatty acids. The third source of free radical generation is the toxic level of different feed ingredients, e.g. toxicoses caused by vitamin A, selenium, and ionophore antibiotics. Other important aspects of antioxidants (e.g. vitamin E and selenium) in poultry are stimulation of the immune response (e.g. in the case of vaccination) and reduction of the risks of free radical formation as a result of macrophage function.