Effects of Graded Levels of Cyperus Alternifolius Rhizome Powder on Feed Digestibility, Growth Performance, Intestinal Microbial Flora, Serum Metabolites, and Immune Responses in Broiler Chickens

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Abstract
Introduction: The use of antibiotics as growth promoters in animal husbandry has been banned due to concerns that antibiotic residues can accumulate in animal tissues and lead to bacterial resistance. The present study aimed to explore the effects of varying amounts of Cyperus alternifolius (C. alternifolius) rhizome powder on feed digestibility, growth performance, intestinal microbial flora, hemato-biochemical parameters, and immune responses in broiler chickens as an alternative to antibiotics. Materials and methods: An experiment was conducted at the Application and Research Farm of the University of Dschang (Cameroon) over 49 days. A total of 512 day-old broiler chickens, including 256 males and 256 females, were randomly assigned to eight treatment groups, with four replicates of 16 chickens each, with equal numbers from both sexes. The treatment groups included a negative control group which administered a basal diet without additive (NC), a basal diet containing 1 g of doxycycline/kg of feed as the positive control group (PC), and six diets containing the powder of C. alternifolius rhizome as a phyto-additive, at the dose of 1 g of C. alternifolius/kg of feed (T1), 2 g (T2), 4 g (T4), 6 g (T6), 8 g (T8) and 10 g (T10). The growth performance, carcass characteristics, microbial flora, feed digestibility, the immune system, and hematological and biochemical parameters were evaluated.Results: Live weight and weight gain increased by approximately 7.02% and 7.11%, respectively, in T4 compared with NC during the finisher phase. Feed conversion ratio was significantly reduced in T4 by approximately 11.05% compared to NC, but it was comparable to that of PC, T6, and T8. The number of lactobacilli and crude protein digestibility increased significantly in all treatment groups compared to NC. Furthermore, in T4, the number of Escherichia coli significantly decreased by 40.9% compared to NC, T1, T8, and T10. Besides the notable increase in total protein level in T4 compared with other groups, the hemato-biochemical parameters of the chickens showed no significant differences across groups.Conclusion: Cyperus alternifolius at a dose of 4 g/kg of feed demonstrated potential as an alternative to growth-promoting antibiotics, with diminished adverse effects on broiler chicken health.

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