Astaxanthin supplementation enriches productive performance, physiological and immunological responses in laying hens

Abstract

Objective: Astaxanthin is a natural super antioxidant. The present study was carried out to investigate the effect of astaxanthin rich <i>Phaffia rhodozyma</i> (PR) supplementation in diets on laying production performance, egg quality, antioxidant defenses and immune defenses in laying hens.Methods: A total of five hundred and twelve 60-week-old Lohmann Brown laying hens (2,243±12 g) were randomly assigned to four groups, each including 4 replicates with 32 birds per replicate. Astaxanthin rich PR was added to corn-soybean meal diets to produce experimental diets containing 0 (Control), 800 mg/kg, 1,200 mg/kg, and 1,600 mg/kg PR, respectively. The astaxanthin content in the diet was 0.96 mg/kg, 1.44 mg/kg and 1.92 mg/kg respectively.Results: Results showed that dietary PR supplementation tended to increase daily feed intake (p = 0.0512). There was no effect of astaxanthin rich PR on Haugh units, albumen height, egg shape index, eggshell strength, and eggshell thickness at weeks 6 (p>0.05). However, egg yolk color was significantly improved (p<0.05). In addition, astaxanthin rich PR supplementation significantly increased serum glutathione peroxidase and superoxide dismutase activity (p<0.05), increased serum immunoglobulin G content (p<0.05), and reduced malondialdehyde content (p<0.05) in laying hens.Conclusion: In conclusion, astaxanthin rich PR can improve the color of egg yolk, enhance the antioxidant defenses, and regulate the immune function.