Effect of onion (<i>Allium cepa</i> L.) as an antibiotic growth promoter substitution on performance, immune responses and serum biochemical parameters in broiler chicks

Abstract

This experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of onion ( Allium cepa L.) as an antibiotic growth promoter substitute on growth performance, immune responses and serum biochemistry in broilers. A total of 192 one-d-old as hatched broiler chicks (Ross 308) were weighed and randomly allocated to four treatment groups, each with 4 replicate pens of 12 chicks. The dietary treatments consisted of the basal diet (control), antibiotic (15 mg Virginiamycin/kg), and control +10 or 30 g fresh onion bulb/kg diet. Body weights of broilers were determined at d 1, 21 and 42, feed intake was determined at the same periods, and feed conversion ratio was calculated accordingly. At 14th and 21st days blood samples were taken for measuring antibody titers against NDV and at 42nd day for biochemical analysis. At d 42, two birds per replicate were slaughtered for determination of lymphoid organ weights. Dietary supplementation of30 g/kg onion increased final body weight of broilers at 42nd d of age compared to the other treatments ( P < 0.05). Birds fed30 gonion/kg in the diet had the highest feed intake than other treatments at different growth periods ( P < 0.05). Dietary treatments failed to induce any significant effect on antibody titers against NDV, although the weight of lymphoid organs was significantly ( P < 0.05) higher for birds fed diets supplemented with30 g/kg Onion. Broilers receiving30 g/kg onion had a significantly higher HDL and lower triglyceride concentrations compared to control groups ( P < 0.05) . Feeding30 g/kg onion resulted in a marked reduction in the concentration of the glucose compared to control groups ( P < 0.05) . The results suggested that die tary inclusion of30 g/kg onion can be applied as a lternatives to in-feed antibiotics for broiler diets.