Evaluating Escherichia Coli Nissle as a Potential Probiotic for Broiler Chickens

Antibiotics have been used therapeutically as feed additive in poultry feeding and they have been reported to improve poultry performance. Consequently, their overuse has been associated with antimicrobial resistance in poultry and poultry products, which is transferable to the consumer, a risk to human health. Alternatives to antibiotics, such as the probiotic Escherichia coli strain nissle 1917 (EcN) have been evaluated for use in humans. There is, however, limited research on the potential use EcN as a probiotic in poultry. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of EcN on growth performance of broiler chickens. In a completely randomized design, a total of 200 1-day-old broiler chicks were fed four dietary treatments comprising a standard corn-soy (SCS) control, SCS + soy protein, SCS + 108 cfu/g EcN, and SCS + 109 cfu/g EcN from hatch to 8 weeks of age (WOA). The EcN was encapsulated in soy protein, premixed in wheat middlings and homogeneously mixed in the SCS diets. Feed and water were provided ad libitum, birds were weighed weekly and body weight gain (BWG), feed consumption (FC) and feed conversion ratio (FCR) were determined weekly. Data were analyzed by one-way ANOVA using the General Linear Model of SAS and means were separated by the Least Square Means option. The birds fed diets containing 109 cfu/g EcN exhibited mean BWG that were 15% higher than those of birds fed the control diets at 1-8 WOA (P\u3c0.05). The FC was higher and FCR was significantly lower (P\u3c0.05) in birds fed the 109 cfu/g EcN. Broilers fed 108 cfu/g EcN had improved BWG and FCR at 1-4 WOA (P\u3c0.05), however differences in these parameters among treatments were not significant at 5-8 WOA (P\u3e0.05). Therefore, feeding 108 cfu/g EcN had slight improvement of BWG and FCR of broilers at 1-4 WOA, whereas feeding 109 cfu/g EcN significantly increased BWG and reduced FCR of broiler chickens at 1-8 WOA