Effect of dietary microbially produced gamma‐linolenic acid and plant extracts on enzymatic and non‐enzymatic antioxidants in various broiler chicken organs

• Published in: Journal of animal physiology and animal nutrition Vol. 98; no. 5; pp. 860 - 866
• Main Authors: Fejercakova, A, Vaskova, J, Baca, M, Vasko, L, Marcincak, S, Hertelyova, Z, Petrasova, D, Guothova, L
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Germany Blackwell Science 01-10-2014; Blackwell Publishing Ltd; Wiley Subscription Services, Inc
• Subjects: additives; Agrimonia; Animal Feed - analysis; animal nutrition; Animal Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; Animals; antioxidant activity; antioxidant enzyme; antioxidants; Antioxidants - metabolism; appetite; Body Weight; broiler chickens; broiler feeding; Chickens - metabolism; diet; Diet - veterinary; digestion; Eating; Fermentation; fungi; Fungi - metabolism; gamma-linolenic acid; gamma-Linolenic Acid - chemistry; gamma-Linolenic Acid - pharmacology; glutathione; glutathione peroxidase; glutathione-disulfide reductase; heart; kidneys; liver; meat; mitochondria; oils; oxidative stability; oxidative stress; peroxidation; peroxides; plant extracts; Plant Extracts - pharmacology; plants extracts; superoxide anion; superoxide dismutase; Vitis; antioxidant enzyme; plants extracts; glutathione; mitochondria; gamma-linolenic acid
• ISSN: 0931-2439; 1439-0396
• DOI: 10.1111/jpn.12146

Plant extracts and fungal fermented feed with gamma‐linolenic acid‐rich microbial oils are perspective additives for use in animal nutrition as appetite and digestion stimulants, stimulants of physiological functions, for the prevention and treatment for certain pathological conditions, and as antioxidants. The activity of antioxidant enzymes and the level of reduced glutathione were measured in the plasma and in liver, heart and kidney mitochondria after 42 days of feeding broiler chickens both regular and combination diets. These were selected based on our previous experience. The administration of agrimony and gamma‐linolenic acid resulted in a significant decrease in superoxide dismutase activity in all four bodies in contrast to plant extracts. We conclude that the decrease in activity is due to decreased production, and hence dismutation, of superoxide radicals to peroxides followed by lower activity of glutathione peroxidase, which was not seen in the case of only plant extract administration. Generally, higher glutathione reductase activity would be in response to increased demands on reduced glutathione as a cofactor for the reaction catalysed by glutathione peroxidase and the utilization of glutathione itself. However, measured levels of reduced glutathione showed no change. The results argue against any oxidative stress conditions. The application of agrimony extract appears to be suitable for the antioxidant effect against peroxidation of gamma‐linolenic acid. As the efficacy of measuring the effects of diets on the oxidative stability of meat caused by selected antioxidant enzymes is rather low, additional data from the experiment will be processed to clearly assess the influence of this combination of diets.