Figure 1. Illustrative images of periodic acid–Schiff (PAS)-hematoxylin-stained sections of jejunum and ileum from broilers fed the experimen- tal diets. Orange arrows indicate denuded lamina propria, the blue arrow shows damage in the villus tip, and black arrows indicate blood in the villi. Scale bars = 100 µm.
DON level. Furthermore, feed was not supplemented with an- ticoccidials or NSP enzymes, with the aim of evaluating ani- mal performance and intestinal integrity. The mycotoxins’ contents of the experimental diets are given in Table 1.
Body weight The average body weight of the birds at the start of the trial was 42.7 g for all treatments. The lowest body weight (BW) at D14 and D28 was observed in broilers fed the moderate DON (MD), regardless of the dietary supplementation with activat- ed charcoal. During the starter (D0–14; Table 2) and grower (D14–28) periods, there were no interactions between DON level and activated charcoal. The lowest body weight gain
(BWG) and highest feed conversion ratio (FCR) at D14 and D28 was observed when birds were fed the MD diet, regard- less of the dietary supplementation with activated charcoal. Considering the complete feeding period (D0–35; Table 2), no interactions between DON and activated charcoal were ob- served, but broiler chickens fed the MD diet during the starter and grower phase had a significantly lower BWG and a higher FCR, even if they were fed a marginally contaminated diet in the finisher period.
Broiler performance DON can impair the performance of broiler chickens, even at moderate levels (2300 ppb). Also, this negative effect is not
▶ ALL ABOUT FEED | Volume 29, No. 3, 2021 9
PHOTO: SCHOTHORST
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