African Journal of
Biotechnology

  • Abbreviation: Afr. J. Biotechnol.
  • Language: English
  • ISSN: 1684-5315
  • DOI: 10.5897/AJB
  • Start Year: 2002
  • Published Articles: 12496

Full Length Research Paper

Effect of citric acid and microbial phytase on serum enzyme activities and plasma minerals retention in broiler chicks

Rouhollah Nourmohammadi*, Seyed Mohammad Hosseini and Homayoun Farhangfar
Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Birjand University, 97175, Birjand, Iran.
Email: [email protected]

  •  Accepted: 11 August 2011
  •  Published: 12 October 2011

Abstract

An experiment was conducted to study the effect of microbial phytase supplementation and citric acid in broiler chicks fed corn-soybean meal base diets on enzyme activities and some blood parameters of serum and plasma minerals concentration in Ross 308 strain broilers. The data was analysed using a randomized complete block design with factorial arrangement of 3×3, three levels of citric acids (0, 3 and 6%) and three levels of phytase (0, 500 and 1000 enzyme unit per kg). There were three replicates for each treatment that total to 270 chicks for the whole experiment. The results indicated that addition of citric acid to diets caused significant decrease in alkaline phosphatase (P<0.05), lactate dehydrogenase (P<0.01) activities, cholesterol (P<0.05) and plasma phosphorus (P) (P<0.01) and Fe (P<0.05) concentrations. Microbial phytase caused significant decrease (P<0.01) in serum enzyme activities and plasma Fe concentration and significantly increased (P<0.01) aspartate aminotransferase activity, triglyceride and plasma P concentration. Microbial phytase and citric acid could modify some serum enzyme activities and increase the availability and use of minerals for growth and performance improvement of broilers. It is therefore necessary to re-evaluatemineral requirements of broiler chickens when a diet is supplemented with phytase and citric acid.

                 

Key words: Citric acid, microbial phytase, plasma minerals, serum enzyme activity, broilers.

 

Abbreviation

ALP, Alkaline phosphatase; ALT, alanine aminotransferase; AST,aspartate aminotransferase;  LDH, lactate dehydrogenase;  CA, citric acid; MP,microbial phytase.