PSVIII-B-7 - Effects of Chitosan Supplementation on Growth Performance and Blood Metabolites in Broiler Chicks

Abstract: Chitosan is a natural polymer with different bioactive properties that can be used in non-ruminant species as chicks. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the dietary inclusion of 0.55% of chitosan on growth performance and blood metabolites in Rhode Island Red chicks under confinement conditions. A total of 30 chicks with an average weight of 36 g were assigned to randomized design and housed in cages of 5 animals and assigned to one of the following treatments for 21 days: 1) control diet, 2) control diet + chitosan 0.55% (CH55). Initial and final weight, feed intake and feed conversion were analyzed; additionally blood samples were collected at the end of the experiment to analyze glucose, cholesterol, high density lipoproteins, very low density lipoproteins, triglycerides and total protein. The results indicate that supplementation of chitosan improves the final weight in chickens and daily weight gain up to 17% (P< 0.05). On the other hand, in blood metabolites, an increase in glucose concentration was found due to the addition of chitosan in the diet (P< 0.05). The remaining variables did not show significant changes by chitosan supplementation and were within the reference range, which suggests that the addition of chitosan improved growth parameters but did not alter the health status of chicks.