Abstract: Background and Objective: The addition of different plant parts as a supplement in the diets of poultry has been reported to have some effects on animal physiology and biochemical functions. This study evaluated the growth performance and haematological profiles of broiler finisher chickens fed leaf meal, raw and toasted seed meals of Moringa from 5-8 weeks. Materials and Methods: A total of 96 day-old chicks were allotted to 4 treatment groups of 8 birds each in a completely randomized design with 3 replications. The trial lasted for 28 days for the finisher phase. Results: The result showed significant differences (p<0.05) in average final weight gain, average daily weight gain, average daily feed intake and feed conversion ratio. There was a highly significant reduction in serum cholesterol, HDLP and LDLP among the birds fed Moringa leaf meal. It was concluded by the study that different Moringa plant parts exert different effects on the animal probably due to the contents of different biochemical compounds. The leaf meal was notably effective in the reduction of serum lipids. The birds fed the toasted Moringa seeds showed significantly higher weight gains than all other treatments. Conclusion: Therefore it can be concluded that Moringa plant-based extracts could effectively replace the use of commercial additives, hence its use is recommended to reduce production costs and increase the profitability of the poultry production business.
INTRODUCTION
The high costs of broiler feed and the attendant reduction in profit margins have made many farmers seek alternative methods not only to reduce feed costs but also to improve feed utilization for overall animal performance and profitability1. In a bid to meet the protein needs of an ever-growing human population, Nigerians rely heavily on poultry products such as broiler meat which is in high demand by households especially on weekends and during ceremonies. This has developed the live chicken and processing segment of the poultry value chain, evident in most urban markets across Nigeria. Live chicken is rated much higher than imported frozen chicken by the average consumer because of its superior taste, wholesomeness and absence of preservatives2. The addition of natural pigments from plants to animal diets has been reported to improve the efficiency of feed utilization3, improved sow fertility and survival of healthy piglets4 and improved feed utilization in poultry1. Besides the high contents of protein, they contain a variety of biologically active compounds that may serve as growth and health-promoting substances. These compounds include vitamins, phenolic acids, flavonoids, isothiocyanates, tannins as well as saponins5, others are alkaloids, terpenoids and steroids6. Moringa oleifera is indigenous to Northern India and Pakistan7 and is introduced throughout the tropics and sub-tropics becoming naturalized in many African countries.
According to Yameogo et al.8, Moringa oleifera leaves contain 27% crude protein, 38.6% carbohydrates, 17% ether extract and 5.9 % moisture while, Anwar and Rashid9 recorded 31.65% crude protein, 34.8% ether extract, 7.54% crude fibre 8.9% moisture and 6.53% ash for the seeds, on dry matter basis. Madalla et al.10 observed that the sulfur-containing amino acids of the kernel and the essential amino acids in the leaves were of higher value than the FAO reference protein. There has been so much report on the rich nutrient profile of Moringa oleifera. Thus, it is said to contain the calcium equivalent of 4 glasses of milk, 4 times the vitamin A content of carrot and thrice the value of iron in spinach11. It has been reported that leaf powder is a source of nourishment for growing children and pregnant mothers in low-income countries12. Bukar et al.13 also reported anti-bacterial, antifungal, anti-hepatotoxic and hypotriglyceridemic properties of Moringa oleifera leaf meal. Studies by Tijani et al.12 recorded an optimum inclusion level of 15% for Moringa oleifera leaf meal. Another report by Oghenebrorhie and Oghenesuvwe14 observed that the weight of birds fed Moringa leaf meal reduced significantly as inclusion levels were increased from 6-10%.
Abdulkarim et al.15 reported that the inclusion of Moringa oleifera seed meal at 0.01% level of inclusion improved dry matter digestibility in broiler finisher birds. Similarly, Mousa et al.16, Wahab et al.19 reported improvements in final body weight and average body weight gain of broiler chicks fed diets fortified with Moringa seed powder at 0.37% for non-germinated seeds and all levels (0.25, 0.50 and 0.75%) for germinated Moringa seeds at 14, 28 and 42 days of age. Furthermore, Ochi et al.17 recorded enhanced live body weight gains in broilers fed Moringa seed meal at 0.5, 1 and 2% levels of inclusion. In the same manner, Ferreira et al.18 recorded improvements in growth performance parameters in broiler chicks fed diets supplemented with 50 g kg–1 of Moringa seed meal compared to the control group. Also, Wahab et al.19 reported that birds fed diets containing enzyme-supplemented Moringa seed meal at 0.75% had better weight gain than the control group fed other enzyme-supplemented dietary treatments. In contrast, decreasing weight gains with increasing levels of inclusion of undecorticated Moringa seed meal at 8, 12 and 16% levels with no significant effect on the haematological parameters was reported by Anyanwu et al.2. Another study by Wahab et al.19 also recorded enhanced immune response and intestinal health of broiler chicken with Moringa leaf powder while Chollom et al.20 demonstrated that Moringa seed extract has strong antiviral activity against the Newcastle disease virus.
Although there are many reports on the inclusion of Moringa oleifera seed meal in broiler diets. It is remarkable to note that in the few studies, the inclusion level has been in micro and small amounts of between 0.01-5%. Furthermore, studies on the comparative evaluation of the leaf meal and seed meal as well as raw and heat-toasted seed meals have not been widely reported. Therefore, it has become necessary to evaluate the efficacy of its addition in poultry diets in the absence of conventional vitamin and mineral premixes, including supplemental amino acids such as methionine and lysine hence this study. Because of this, the inclusion level was increased to 2.5%. The haematological analysis is important in this study because the blood profile is an important part of clinical pathology which indicates the normal health status of an animal. The blood serum is the fluid component of the blood that is neither a clothing factor nor a cell. It is the medium upon which cellular components such as red blood cells, white blood cells, antibodies and enzyme factors, traverse around the body of the animal. Higher or lower values may indicate the body’s response to the physiological condition which could be adverse or normal in the animal.
More so, since the survival of the poultry industry in the Southeast Region of Nigeria is premised on the reduction of cost of production the search for alternative additives that are capable of improving feed efficiency at minimal cost would continue. The improvement in feed utilization promotes lower feed consumption and reduces the cost of production which before now was achieved by the use of many synthetic growth promoters and probiotics, some of which may be harmful. Because of the recent concerns about the long-term health implication of prolonged use of synthetic products it becomes imperative to seek to replace these synthetic feed additives/growth promoters with natural-based products. Based on the foregoing, therefore, this study was initiated.
The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of the inclusion of Moringa oleifera leaf and seed cake fractions on the growth performance and haematological characteristics of broiler finisher birds.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Study area: The experiment was carried out in the Poultry Unit of the Teaching and Research Farm of the School of Agriculture and Agricultural Technology (SAAT), Federal University of Technology, Owerri, Imo State, Nigeria between April and June 2019. Owerri is located at an altitude of 90 m.a.s.l. The mean annual rainfall, temperature and humidity are 2500 mm, 26.5-27.5°C and 70-80%, respectively. The duration of the dry season is 3 months with an annual rainfall of more than 2000 mm and the mean annual evaporation is 1450 mm. The soil is sandy loam with an average pH of 5.5.
Research protocol: Fresh leaves of Moringa were harvested from within the University Campus and surrounding areas and were spread under the sun to facilitate drying for 4-5 days until the leaves become crispy while still retaining their greenish colouration. The dried leaves were then ground into a meal using a motorized electric grinding mill to produce a Moringa oleifera leaf meal (MOLM). Similarly, the dry seeds of Moringa were sorted, cleaned and divided into two batches, one batch was toasted for 10-15 min, in a frying pan using dry heat, while the other one was left raw. The toasted and raw Moringa seeds were then separately ground into a meal using a motorized electric grinding mill to produce Moringa oleifera seed cake (MOSC).
A total of 96-day-old broiler chicks of cob-stain were purchased from a distributor in Owerri. The birds were divided into 4 groups and randomly assigned to the four experimental diets in a Completely Randomized Design (CRD). Each group was further subdivided (replicated) into 3 groups of 8 birds each. They were housed in a deep litter system with wood shavings used as litter materials. Feed and water were provided ad-libitum during the trial period. Litter was changed periodically to reduce the build-up of pathogenic microbes as well as the observance of other routine poultry management practices. Four experimental broiler finisher diets were formulated such that the diets contained 0 (control) and 2.5% inclusion level of leaf meal, raw and toasted seed meals respectively, at the finisher phase. The composition of the experimental diets during the finisher phase is shown in Table 1.
The parameters measured were initial body weight, final body weight, weekly body weight, average daily body weight, average daily feed intake and feed conversion ratio. Birds were weighed together at the beginning of the experiment and the end of each week and the weight was recorded. The average weight per treatment was obtained by dividing the total weight of birds in the treatment by the number of birds in that treatment group. The haematological parameters measured were, Haemoglobin (Hb), Packed Cell Volume (PCV) Red Blood Cells (RBC), Mean Cell Hemoglobin (MCH) Mean Cell Volume (MCV), Mean Cell Hb Concentration (MCHC), White Blood Cell (WBC), Neutrophils, Lymphocytes (LY), Eosinophils, Monocytes, Basophils (BA), using Haematological Analyzer Sussex xp_100(Japan). The lipid samples were analyzed for Cholesterol, Triglyceride, HDL and LDL, using an automatic Biochemical Analyzer (Clinic 2000).
Haematological profile: The haematological indices were determined using standard procedures. Haemoglobin (HB) was determined by the cyanmethaemoglobin method21, Packed Cell Volume (PCV) was determined using the micro-haematocrit method22, Red Blood Cell (RBC), the count was determined by the Haemocytometer Method22, Mean Cell Volume (MCV), Mean Cell Haemoglobin (MCH), Mean Cell Haemoglobin Concentration (MCHC ) were calculated using the standard formula Platelets23, White Blood Cell (WBC), Lymphocyte Monocyte, Neutrophil were determined using a Beckman-Coulter AcT 5 Diff. haematology analyser according to the manufacturer’s guidelines (Beckman Coulter (UK) Ltd.). The blood serum cholesterol and triglyceride concentrations were determined according to the methods24, using commercial kits (Spinreact, Spain). The concentration of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL) in the serum was estimated by the method25. The low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL) was estimated as the difference between total cholesterol and high-density lipoprotein with triglyceride divided by five according to the equations described by Sahu et al.26.
| Table 1: | Percentage composition of experimental diet at the finisher phase | |||
| Ingredients |
Diet 1 (control) |
Diet 2 (toasted seed cake) |
Diet 3 (raw seed cake) |
Diet 4 (leaf meal) |
| Maize |
62 |
62 |
62 |
62 |
| Soya bean |
20 |
17.5 |
17.5 |
17.5 |
| PKC |
8 |
8 |
8 |
8 |
| Wheat offal |
4 |
4 |
4 |
4 |
| Moringa plant fraction |
0.0 |
2.5 |
2.5 |
2.5 |
| Fish meal |
2 |
2.75 |
2.75 |
2.75 |
| Bone meal |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
| Lysine |
0.25 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
| Methionine |
0.25 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
| Vit/min premix* |
0.25 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
| Salt |
0.25 |
0.25 |
0.25 |
0.25 |
| Total |
100 |
100 |
100 |
100 |
Statistical analysis: Data on each of the parameters were subjected to Analysis of Variance using the (ANOVA) as a Completely Randomized Design (CRD). The Duncan New Multiple Range Test was used to determine differences between treatment means27.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
There were significant (p<0.05) differences in average final weight gain, average daily weight gain, average daily feed intake and feed conversion ratio with treatment 2 (toasted seed meal) showing the highest average final body weight of 2470 g when compared to with the rest of the trial diets, with treatment 4 having the least final weight of 1990 g in Table 2. This is consistent with previous reports14-16. The depressed weights recorded for the leaf meal fraction could be a result of the highly fibrous nature of the leaf meal which also resulted in a lower average daily feed intake. Furthermore, the high ether extract in the seed meal may also have contributed to the higher energy level of diets containing seed meal. The results also showed that treatments 1 and 3, were statistically similar (p>0.05) in average daily weight gain, average feed intake and feed conversion ratio. These results are in line with Ochi et al.17 and Ferreira et al.18 which reported significant differences in weight gains at various levels of inclusion of Moringa in the diet of broiler birds. However, this contrasts sharply with the previous report by Anyanwu et al.2 which recorded a significant reduction in the feed intake and weight gains among birds fed diets containing Moringa oleifera and Pueraria phaseoloides leaf meals. Abdulkarim et al.15 also reported increased digestibility in dry matter digestibility in broiler finisher birds.
Treatment 4 had the least average weight gain but a higher average daily feed intake though not significantly (p>0.05) different. Furthermore, in terms of average daily weight gain treatments, 1 and 2 showed better performance and differed significantly (p<0.05) from treatments 3 and 4.
Treatments 4 and 2 had higher average daily feed intake than the rest treatments although not significant (p>0.05). Treatment 4 differed significantly (p<0.05) from treatments 3 and 2 in daily feed intake. The feed conversion ratio showed that treatments 1 and 2 had a better conversion ratio although not significant (p>0.05). The poorer feed conversion efficiency observed in treatment 4 may result from the fibrous nature of the leaf meal fraction, the lower nutritional composition of the leaf meal and probably the absence of feed enzymes28. Mune et al.29 demonstrated that Moringa seed meal contained higher vitamin and mineral and amino acid content as compared to other leaf meals. The serum lipid profile of the various treatments is presented in Table 3. The cholesterol levels of birds in T1 (115.50 mg dL–1), T2 (112 mg dL–1) and T3 (119.50 mg dL–1) were statistically similar showing no significant (p>0.05) differences but were statistically significant (p<0.05) from T4 (95.00 mg dL–1) at 63 days of age. This is in agreement with the previous reports2, which suggest that Moringa seed meals had no significant effect on serum cholesterol levels. But contrasts with other study by Ferreira et al.18 which reported lower total cholesterol content in broiler finisher chickens fed 0.75% MOSP (with and without) enzyme when compared to the control. Also, HDL and LDL levels were significantly lower at 46.00 and 26.50 mg dL–1 (p<0.05) for the leaf meal fraction as compared to the other treatments. Based on these results, it can be seen that Moringa oleifera leaf meal demonstrated a significant (p<0.05) reduction in serum cholesterol, HDL and LDL levels when compared to other Moringa plant fractions. This is in agreement with previous reports that Moringa leaf meal is useful in treating obesity due to its hypocholesterolemic property13. However, the values for the raw and toasted seed meals were not significant (p>0.05) in the reduction of serum lipids.
There were no significant differences in levels of PCV, RBC, HB, MCV, MCH, MCHC, WBC and LYMPH Platelet among treatments when compared with other parameters, Table 4. This is consistent with the result of Bukar et al.13 which found no significant differences in PCV, WBC and lymphocytes.
| Table 2: | Performance of broiler birds from 5-9 weeks of growth | ||||
| Parameter |
Diet 1 (control) |
Diet 2 (toasted seed cake) |
Diet 3 (raw seed cake) |
Diet 4 (leaf meal) |
SEM |
| Average initial body weight (g) |
1110b |
1260 ab |
1210 b |
1033b |
57.00 |
| Average final body weight (g) |
2340b |
2470a |
2330b |
1990c |
51.1 |
| Average weight gain (g) |
1230a |
1210a |
1120b |
957b |
22.52 |
| Average daily weight gain (g) |
43.93a |
43.21a |
40b |
34.17b |
6.51 |
| Average daily feed intake (g) |
166.7ab |
173.31ab |
168.32b |
177.98a |
8.33 |
| Feed conversion ratio |
3.79a |
4.01ab |
4.21b |
5.20b |
1.8 |
| Mortality |
- |
- |
- |
4 |
- |
| Means across rows with different superscripts are significantly different (p<0.05) | |||||
| Table 3: | Effect of different feed treatments on lipid parameters of broilers chickens at 63 days of age | |||||
| Parameters |
Diet 1 (control) |
Diet 2 (toasted seed cake) |
Diet 3 (raw seed cake) |
Diet 4 (leaf meal) |
SEM |
p-value |
| Cholesterol (mg dL–1) |
115.50ba |
119.50a |
112.00ba |
95.00b |
6.50 |
0.1345 |
| Triglyceride (mg dL–1) |
118.00a |
79.50a |
113.50a |
114.50a |
22.59 |
0.6179 |
| HDL (mg dL–1) |
50.50ba |
51.00ba |
54.00a |
46.00b |
1.58 |
0.0611 |
| LDL (mg dL–1) |
41.00ba |
52.50a |
35.00b |
26.500b |
4.63 |
0.0361 |
| Means bearing different superscript (a,b) in a column differ significantly (p<0.05) and SEM: Standard error of the mean | ||||||
| Table 4: | Effect of different feed treatments on the haematological parameter of broiler chickens at 63 days of age | |||||
| Parameters |
Control |
Toasted |
Raw seed |
Leaf meal |
SEM |
p-value |
| Packed cell volume (%) |
26.55b |
26.30b |
36.00a |
34.40a |
0.50 |
<0.0001 |
| Red blood cell (×1012 L-1) |
2.64b |
2.62b |
2.83a |
2.31c |
0.03 |
0.0003 |
| Haemoglobin (g dL–1) |
8.80b |
8.90b |
12.10a |
12.30a |
0.13 |
<0.0001 |
| MCV (fl) |
100.60b |
102.20a |
93.15c |
99.40b |
0.43 |
<0.0001 |
| MCH (Pg) |
59.95a |
60.80a |
53.50b |
62.20a |
0.6 |
0.0004 |
| MCHC (g dL–1) |
59.65b |
59.45b |
59.60b |
62.30a |
0.13 |
<0.0001 |
| White blood cell (×109 L–1) |
113.25bc |
120.55a |
117.60ba |
110.00c |
1.67 |
0.0187 |
| Lymphocytes (%) |
79.50b |
81.50a |
79.00b |
78.00b |
0.43 |
0.0066 |
| Platelet P(×109 L–1) |
23.00a |
23.50a |
31.00a |
20.50a |
3.0 |
0.1868 |
| Means bearing different superscript (a,b,c) in a column differ significantly (p< 0.05) and SEM: Standard error of the mean | ||||||
However, the level of WBC recorded for T2 was 120.55×109 L–1 which was highly significant, while T1, T4 and T3 were statistically similar implying no significant difference between them. This may mean that the inclusion of toasted Moringa seed meal enhanced the immunological functions in the birds. Another study by Mune et al.29 recorded a WBC count range of 18 -23 (×103 mL–1) which is lower than the values recorded in this trial. Also, higher WBC counts were elevated among birds fed higher contents of Moringa seed meal. This is supported by the zero mortality experienced among birds fed the toasted Moringa seed meal.
Higher levels of haemoglobin and PCV were observed in diets containing Moringa leaf meal. This is in agreement with other reports by Tijani et al.12 which found higher PCV, haemoglobin and WBC among birds fed the control diet and 5 and 10% Moringa inclusion.
CONCLUSION
The result of this study demonstrated that supplementation of broiler feeds with toasted Moringa seed meal significantly increased daily and final weight gains in broiler finishers more than the control at a 2.5% level of inclusion. This implies that toasted Moringa seed meal can comfortably replace commercial feed additives in broiler finisher diets. In addition, Moringa oleifera leaf meal significantly reduced the cholesterol level of birds at an inclusion level of 2.5% in broiler finisher birds and therefore can serve as an effective treatment in the reduction of belly fats in chickens thereby improving the quality of the meat. It is interesting to note that the value of all lipid parameters of birds fed Moringa oleifera leaf meal showed a significant reduction (p<0.05) than other test diets. The use of Moringa oleifera could be a natural method of improving the lipid and haematological parameters for better meat quality and overall growth performance and health status of broiler birds without any side effects. In conclusion, this study established the effectiveness of toasted Moringa oleifera seed meal for optimum weight gains in broilers and Moringa oleifera leaf meal in the reduction of serum lipids in poultry.
SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT
This study has discovered the potential of toasted Moringa seed meal as a growth promoter in broiler diets and has reaffirmed the efficacy of the leaf powder in the reduction of serum lipids. The results from this study could be beneficial in the reduction of belly fat in broilers and improvement in overall meat quality. Furthermore, this could open a new vista to uncover the specific active compounds responsible for facilitating feed utilization and provide better insight into critical areas of natural additive and nutrient metabolism.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
The authors are grateful to the Management and Staff of the School of Agriculture and Agricultural Technology, Owerri for the provision of space and facilities for the trial.