EFFECTS OF GRADED DIETARY ORGANIC ZINC SUPPLEMENTATION ON GROWTH PERFORMANCE AND JEJUNAL HISTOMORPHOLOGY IN BROILER CHICKENS
Keywords:
Organic zinc, Zinc methionine, Broiler chickens, Jejunal histomorphology, Dietary supplementationAbstract
The present work examined how incremental inclusion of zinc methionine in broiler diets influences productive performance and the microarchitecture of the jejunal mucosa. A total of 120 day-old Ross 308 chicks were distributed among four dietary regimens: an unsupplemented basal ration serving as the control, and three rations fortified with zinc methionine to supply 20, 40, or 80 mg of elemental Zn per kilogram of feed. Every regimen was represented by three pens of ten birds each, and the trial was conducted until the birds reached 35 days of age. Productive responses were quantified in terms of live weight, weight gain, feed consumption, and feed conversion ratio, whereas villus height, crypt depth, and their ratio were defined as the indicators of jejunal mucosal architecture. Preliminary evaluation of the performance data detected no significant dietary effect on final live weight, overall weight gain, cumulative feed consumption, or whole-period feed conversion efficiency. A treatment effect was only found in the 4th week (days 21-28); weight gain was higher in the 40 and 80 mg Zn/kg groups than in the 20 mg Zn/kg group, and feed conversion ratio was lower in the 40 and 80 mg Zn/kg groups than in the 20 mg Zn/kg group during the 4th week. These interval-specific divergences, however, disappeared when the full rearing period was considered. Notably, the allocation of treatments and the definition of the experimental unit remain to be confirmed, and verified jejunal morphometric data have yet to be obtained. Taken together, the initial evidence points to transient, age-dependent fluctuations in growth response rather than a lasting productive benefit. Accordingly, neither an optimal inclusion rate of zinc methionine nor a supplementation-driven enhancement of jejunal morphology can be inferred at this stage, and these outcomes must be substantiated through validated treatment records, statistically independent pen-level data, and genuine intestinal measurements.
References
Aviagen. (2022). Ross broiler nutrition specifications.
Chand, N., Zahirullah, Khan, R. U., Shah, M., Naz, S., & Tinelli, A. (2020). Zinc source modulates zootechnical characteristics, intestinal features, humoral response, and paraoxonase (PON1) activity in broilers. Tropical Animal Health and Production, 52(2), 511–515. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11250-019-02036-4
Duncan, C. P. (1955) Multiple range and multiple F tests.Biometric, 27, 1-22.
De Grande, A., Leleu, S., Delezie, E., Rapp, C., De Smet, S., Goossens, E., Haesebrouck, F., Van Immerseel, F., & Ducatelle, R. (2020). Dietary zinc source impacts intestinal morphology and oxidative stress in young broilers. Poultry Science, 99(1), 441–453. https://doi.org/10.3382/ps/pez525
Hu, P., Li, K., Peng, X., Yao, T., Zhu, C., Gu, H., Liu, H.-Y., Sun, M.-A., Hu, Y., Ennab, W., Luo, X., & Cai, D. (2024). Zinc intake ameliorates intestinal morphology and oxidative stress of broiler chickens under heat stress. Frontiers in Immunology, 14, Article 1308907. https://doi.org/10.3389/fimmu.2023.1308907
Khan, M. I., Chand, N., Naz, S., Alonaizan, R., Hu, H., Shamsi, S., & Khan, R. U. (2024). Effects of zinc supplementation from organic and inorganic sources on growth, blood biochemical indices, and intestinal microarchitecture in broilers. Veterinary Quarterly, 44(1), Article 2298491. https://doi.org/10.1080/01652176.2023.2298491
Ma, W., Niu, H., Feng, J., Wang, Y., & Feng, J. (2011). Effects of zinc glycine chelate on oxidative stress, contents of trace elements, and intestinal morphology in broilers. Biological Trace Element Research, 142(3), 546–556. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-010-8824-9
National Research Council. (1994). Nutrient requirements of poultry (9th rev. ed.). National Academy Press.
Ogbuewu, I. P., & Mbajiorgu, C. A. (2023). Potentials of dietary zinc supplementation in improving growth performance, health status, and meat quality of broiler chickens. Biological Trace Element Research, 201(3), 1418–1431. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-022-03223-5
Saber, H. S., & Alian, H. A. (2026). Nano zinc oxide improves growth rate, carcass traits, meat chemical composition, serum and tissue mineral profiles, mineral retention, and intestinal morphology in broiler chickens compared to inorganic and organic zinc. Biological Trace Element Research, 204(2), 909–924. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-025-04716-9
Schneider, C. A., Rasband, W. S., & Eliceiri, K. W. (2012). NIH Image to ImageJ: 25 years of image analysis. Nature Methods, 9(7), 671–675. https://doi.org/10.1038/nmeth.2089
Xie, S., Li, Y., Suo, Y., Wang, Z., Zhang, B., Li, J., Huang, J., Wang, Y., Ma, C., Lin, D., Ma, T., & Shao, Y. (2025). Effect of organic, nano, and inorganic zinc sources on growth performance, antioxidant function, and intestinal health of young broilers. Biological Trace Element Research, 203(5), 2776–2786. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-024-04341-y
Yu, Y., Lu, L., Wang, R. L., Xi, L., Luo, X. G., & Liu, B. (2010). Effects of zinc source and phytate on zinc absorption by in situ ligated intestinal loops of broilers. Poultry Science, 89(10), 2157–2165. https://doi.org/10.3382/ps.2009-00486
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
CC BY
This license enables reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format, so long as attribution is given to the creator. The license allows for commercial use. CC BY includes the following elements:
BY: credit must be given to the creator.
