Caecal microbiome and metabolites associated with different growth performances of broilers

Abstract

We investigated changes in the caecal microbial composition and metabolic compounds of broiler chickens weighing approximately 0.8–1.5 kg. Arbor Acres (AA) broilers (n =186) were divided into four groups (A–D) according to body weight on day 35. The results showed that there were significant differences in the average daily feed intake (ADFI), average daily gain (ADG), and feed-to-gain ratio (F:G) of chickens (P less than 0.05). The abundance of 11 genera were found to be significantly different in the four groups (P less than 0.05). The broilers with poor performance had increased levels of D-mannose, hexadecanoic acid, cholesterol, L-valine, L-leucine, glutamic acid, glucopyranose, á-D-allopyranose, and phosphoric acid (P less than 0.05) in the cecum. Microbial compositions were different in the ceca of broilers with different growth performances, and higher growth performance correlated with changes in metabolic pathways related to energy, amino acids, and others.