Polyether ionophore resistance in a one health perspective.

Antimicrobial resistance is a major threat to human health and must be approached from a One Health perspective. Use of antimicrobials in animal husbandry can lead to dissemination and persistence of resistance in human pathogens. Polyether ionophores (PIs) have antimicrobial activities and are among the most extensively used feed additives for major production animals.

Varying starch to fat ratios in pelleted diets: II. Effects on intestinal histomorphometry, and short-chain fatty acids in -challenged broiler chickens.

1. The hypothesis behind the study was that a high dietary starch level (HS) would lead to impaired gut health compared to a low-starch diet (LS) in -challenged broilers. The effects of two diets with different starch to fat ratios on intestinal histomorphometry, counts and toxin profile, necrotic enteritis prevalence and abundance of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) were examined.

Varying starch to fat ratios in pelleted diets: I. Effects on nutrient digestibility and production performance in -challenged broiler chickens.

1. The hypothesis was that a diet with a high starch to fat ratio (HS) impairs nutrient digestibility and growth performance, as compared to a diet with a low starch to fat ratio (LS) in -challenged broilers. From days 10 to 29, 12 replicate pens of birds were given isocaloric and isonitrogenous steam-pelleted diets with either HS or LS, by replacing the wheat starch in one diet by a mixture of rapeseed oil and inert sand in the other.

Effect of Feed Additives as Alternatives to In-feed Antimicrobials on Production Performance and Intestinal Counts in Broiler Chickens.

Numerous non-antibiotic feed additives (alternatives to antibiotics, ATAs) have been marketed, but few have been evaluated under uniform testing conditions modelling commercial flocks. We compared 24 ATA treatments and the ionophorous coccidiostat narasin against a diet without any feed additives. Feed conversion ratio and body weight gain were registered from day 0 to 28 in Ross 308 chickens housed on litter floor.