Effect of adding two levels of dried Molokhia (Corchorus Olitorius L.) leaves to the diet on some physiological characteristics and bacterial numbers in the intestines of broilers

Abstract

This study has tackled the poultry field of (Abu Ghraib site) related to the animal production Department/ College of Agricultural Engineering Sciences/ University of Baghdad for 42 days (from 15 Oct 2021 to 26 Nov 2021). The study aims to investigate the effect of adding the powder of Corchorus olitorius dried leaves to the diet for different periods on the productive performance of broilers. Three hundred fifteen broiler chicks are used (Ross 308 breed) regardless of gender, of one day age and an initial weight of 40 gm. The chicks are divided into seven coefficients and three replicators for each coefficient; each replicator includes 15 chicks. The chicks starting from age 1-21 days are fed with a (starter) chicken feed consisting of 3006.5 kilo calories/ Kg. Feed metabolized energy and 22% raw protein. Then, the chicks are fed with a (finisher) chicken feed from 22-42 days of age. The finisher comprises 3171.11-kilo calories/ Kg. of feed metabolized energy and 20.54 raw protein. Biochemical tests reveal no effect of the coefficients of adding powder of Corchorus olitorius L. dried leaves on the averages of glucose and phosphorus in blood serum. An improvement (P˂0.05) of T4 coefficient covering albumin, globulin, cholesterol, and whole averages of protein is shown. As for glutathione, all adding coefficients show improvements (P˂0.05) compared to the control coefficient. Coefficient T7 (5.47mg) shows a more significant increase, whereas the lowest is (4.14mg/ml). The results indicated that treatments of adding dried Molokhia leaves powder led to a significant (P < 0.05) increase in the number of Lactobacillus beneficial bacteria compared to the control treatment. In contrast, a significant (P < 0.05) increase was observed in the number of pathogenic bacteria, E. coli, for the control treatment compared to addition treatments for all periods. Keywords: chicken feed, dried leaves, molokhia, physiological traits, lactobacillus.