Post on 14-May-2023
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This is unedited, preprint, author version of the article: S. Swiatkiewicz, A. 1
Arczewska-Wlosek, D. Jozefiak (2015). Application of microalgae biomass in 2
poultry nutrition. 3
WORLD’S POULTRY SCIENCE JOURNAL, 2015, 71 (04). 4
5
Application of microalgae biomass in poultry nutrition 6
S. ŚWIĄTKIEWICZ1*, A. ARCZEWSKA-WŁOSEK1, and D. JÓZEFIAK2 7
1 National Research Institute of Animal Production, Department of Animal Nutrition and 8
2 Poznań University of Life Sciences, Department of Animal Nutrition and Feed Management 9
ul. Wołyńska 33, 60-637 Poznań, Poland 10
*Corresponding author: sylwester.swiatkiewicz@izoo.krakow.pl 11
Abbreviated title: Microalgae in poultry nutrition 12
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The aim of this review article is to discuss the results of experiments on the use of 14
microalgae as the feed material in poultry nutrition. Microalgae are unicellular, 15
photosynthetic aquatic plants. They are introduced to poultry diets mainly as a rich 16
source of n-3 long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids, including docohexaenoic and 17
eicosapentaenoic acid, but can also serve as a protein, microelements, vitamins, and 18
antioxidants source, as well as a pigmentation agent. The results of the majority of 19
experiments have shown that microalgae, mainly Spirulina and Chlorella, also as 20
defatted biomass from biofuel production, can be successfully used as feed material in 21
poultry nutrition. They can have beneficial effects, mainly on meat and egg quality, i.e. 22
the increased concentration of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and carotenoids in these 23
products, but also in regards to performance indices and immune function. Positive 24
results were also obtained when fresh microalgae biomass was used to replace antibiotic 25
2
growth promoter in poultry diets. In conclusion, because of their chemical composition, 26
microalgae can be efficiently used in poultry nutrition to enhance the pigmentation and 27
nutritional value of meat and eggs, as well as a partial replacement of conventional 28
protein sources, mainly soybean meal. 29
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Keywords: microalgae, poultry, eggs and meat quality, n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, 31
carotenoids. 32
33
Introduction 34
Microalgae, i.e. microscopic algae, are unicellular, photosynthetic, salt or fresh water 35
aquatic plants. As a rich source of nutrients and biologically active substances, i.e., protein, 36
amino acids, n-3 long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCPUFA n-3), microelements, 37
vitamins, antioxidants, and carotenoids, they have a long history of application as a food for 38
humans (Belay et al., 1996). 39
The increasing demand for animal origin food results in a need for new feed materials 40
which could be a safe source of protein and other nutrients for poultry and livestock. Several 41
feeding experiments demonstrate that microalgae of different species can be successfully 42
included into poultry diets, also as defatted biomass from biofuel production, and can have a 43
beneficial influence on birds’ health, performance, and quality of meat and eggs. Especially 44
important for the poultry industry could be recent studies where microalgal biomass was 45
efficiently used as an effective way of production of eggs containing health-promoting lipids, 46
i.e. eggs enriched with health-promoting long-chain n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids 47
(LCPUFAs n-3). The traditional method of enriching eggs with LCPUFAs n-3 is to 48
incorporate linseed or fish oil into the layers’ diet; however, this last method is limited by the 49
big demand for marine products and the risk of their contamination by heavy metals (Wu et 50
3
al., 2012). For this reason the use of some microalgae species, for instance Nannochloropsis 51
gaditana, Schizochytrium limacinum, Phaeodactylum tricornutum, and Isochrysis galbana, in 52
poultry nutrition could be of interest not only as a source of nutrients, but also as an 53
alternative way of enriching of eggs with LCPUFAs n-3. The objective of this article is to 54
review and discuss the results of the current poultry studies where the effects of poultry 55
feeding with microalgae have been estimated. 56
57
Efficacy of microalgal biomass in poultry nutrition 58
SPIRULINA 59
A special group of microalgae is blue-green algae (Spirulina), cultivated worldwide 60
for use in the food and feed industries. Because of their prokaryotic cell type, this microalgae 61
is also called cyanobacteria and can be classified into 2 species: Spirulina platensis and 62
Spirulina maxima. Dried Spirulina biomass has a high nutritional value for human and 63
animals as it contains about 60-70% of protein, as well as being a good source of essential 64
fatty acids, vitamins, and minerals (Khan et al., 2005). Spirulina is also very rich source of 65
carotenoids, as it contains about 6,000 mg total xanthophylls and 7,000 mg total 66
carotenoids/kg freeze-dried biomass (Anderson et al., 1991). The study by Muhling et al. 67
(2005) has shown very high concentration of gamma-linolenic acid, an essential polyunsaturated 68
fatty acid in Spirulina biomass (12.9-29.4% total fatty acids). 69
70
Broilers 71
The results of the experiments on the effect of Spirulina inclusion into poultry diets are 72
summarised in Table 1. In their recent work, Evans et al. (2015) showed that dried full-fat 73
Spirulina algae has an energy value equal to approximately 90% the energy of corn (2839 74
4
kcal TMEn/kg), as well as containing a high level of crude protein (76%) and essential amino 75
acids. They also reported that up to 16% of dried algae can be incorporated into a broiler 76
starter diet without any negative effect on the performance of chicks. Similar results were 77
obtained in earlier work by Ross and Dominy (1990) who found no significant differences in 78
performance of broilers fed a diet containing 1.5, 3, 6 or 12% of dehydrated Spirulina. They 79
concluded that Spirulina at a diet content of up to 12% may be substituted for other protein 80
sources in broiler diets with good growth and feed efficiency. Also, Toyomizu et al. (2001) 81
showed no difference in growth performance of broilers fed with or without 4 and 8% of 82
Spirulina biomass in the diet. However, the yellowness of muscles, skin, fat and liver 83
increased with an increasing dietary level of microalgae, being more attractive for consumers. 84
As it was stressed by the authors, dietary Spirulina is useful for manipulation of chicken meat 85
colour as the range where the fillets produced by feeding Spirulina do not fall under the 86
extremes of either dark or light meat (Toyomizu et al., 2001). Similar results were reported by 87
Venkataraman et al. (1994) who demonstrated no effect of dried Spirulina (14 or 17% in the 88
diet), as a replacement for dietary fish meal or groundnut cake protein, on performance, 89
dressing percentage, and histopathology of the various organs of broiler; however they found 90
a more intensive meat colour in the case of birds fed algal diet. In contrast to the above 91
authors, Shanmugapriya et al. (2015) recently observed improved body weight gain (BWG), 92
feed conversion ratio (FCR), and villus length in broilers fed a diet containing Spirulina 93
biomass. Mariey et al. (2014) reported that a low dietary level of Spirulina biomass (0.02 or 94
0.03%) not only improved performance in broilers, but also increased dressing percentage, 95
meat colour score, weight of lymphoid organs, improved blood morphology, as well as 96
decreased relative abdominal fat weight, and blood cholesterol, triglycerides and total lipids. 97
The results of several researches showed that Spirulina could be used to enhance the 98
immune function of birds. For example, Quereshi et al. (1996) reported that broiler chicks fed 99
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the diet with 1.0% Spirulina had increased phytohemagglutinin-mediated lymphocyte 100
proliferation and phagocytic activity of macrophages compared to control treatment. Raju et 101
al. (2005) found that dietary Spirulina (0.05%) could partially alleviate the negative effects of 102
aflatoxin on weight of immune organs and BWG in broilers. 103
104
Table 1: Results of selected studies on the effects of Spirulina inclusion into poultry diets 105
Dietary
concentration
of algae
Animals, duration of the study
and studied characteristics
Results References
1.5, 3, 6, or 12% Leghorn cockerel chicks, 1-21
d. Performance indices.
No significant effect of Spirulina on
performance.
Ross and
Dominy (1990)
0.001, 0.01, 0.1,
1.0 %
White Leghorns and broiler
chicks, 1-49 1-21 d. Growth
performance, immune
characteristics.
No effect of Spirulina on performance. Leghorn
chicks in Spirulina-dietary groups had increased
total anti-SRBC titers; birds of both strains had
increased phagocytic potential of macrophages
and NK-cell activity.
Qureshi et al.
(1996)
4 or 8% Broiler chickens, 21-37 d.
Performance and pigmentation
of the muscles.
No effect of Spirulina on performance and
relative weights of internal organs. Pigmentation
(yellowness) of muscles, skin, fat, and liver
increased with an increasing dietary level of
Spirulina.
Toyomizu et al.
(2001)
0.01, 0.02, or
0.03%
Broiler chickens, 1-42 d.
Performance, carcass and meat
quality, blood hematology and
biochemistry, weight of
lymphoid organs.
0.02 or 0.03% of Spirulina increased BWG, feed
efficiency, meat colour score, weight of bursa,
thymus and spleen, blood total protein, globulin
and albumin, and red and white blood cells
count, as well as lowered relative abdominal fat
weight, blood plasma cholesterol, triglycerides,
and total lipids.
Mariey et al.
(2014)
6, 11, 16, or
21%
Broiler chickens, 1-21 d.
Performance, content of
digestible amino acids in the
diet.
Dietary levels up to 16% algae resulted in a
similar performance as in control group. The
positive effect of algae inclusion on the
digestible methionine content in the diet.
Evans et al.
(2015)
0.5, 1.0, or 1.5% Broiler chickens, 1-21 d.
Performance indices,
histological measurements.
A positive effect of 1% Spirulina on BWG,
FCR, and villus length.
Shanmugapriya
et al. (2015)
1.5, 2.0, or 2.5% Laying hens, 63-67 wk. Laying
performance, yolk colour.
Spirulina increased yolk colour without an effect
on egg performance.
Zahroojian et
al. (2011)
1.5, 2.0, or 2.5% Laying hens, 63-67 wk.
Performance, egg quality, yolk
cholesterol content.
No significant effect of Spirulina on studied
indices, except yolk colour, which was increased
by dietary algae addition.
Zahroojian et
al. (2013)
106
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Laying birds and other poultry species 107
Experiments with laying birds were mainly aimed to evaluate the efficiency of Spirulina 108
biomass as a source of carotenoids for pigmentation of egg yolks. The results of experiments 109
with laying hens (Zahroojian et al., 2011; Zahroojian et al., 2013) demonstrated that the 110
carotenoids of Spirulina are well absorbed and accumulated in the egg yolk, and 2.0-2.5% 111
dietary Spirulina can be used to produce eggs with increased yolk colour with similar 112
efficiency to synthetic pigment, whereas an earlier study with quails (Anderson et al., 1991) 113
showed that an optimal yolk colour can be achieved when 1% of Spirulina biomass is added 114
to the diet. Mariey et al. (2012) reported improved egg performance, egg hatchability and 115
yolk colour when laying hens were fed a diet with a low content of Spirulina (0.1-0.2%). 116
The aim of an early study with Japanese quails by Ross and Dominy (1990) was to 117
evaluate the effect of Spirulina (1.5, 3.0, 6.0, or 12.0% in the diet) on growth performance, 118
egg production and egg quality. The authors observed no significant differences due to the 119
dietary microalgae level, except increased yolk colour and fertility in birds fed with Spirulina, 120
so they concluded that up to 12% of Spirulina biomass can be included into diets for laying 121
quails. The results of the study with growing quails (15-35 day of age) showed no negative 122
effects in growth performance and meat quality when up to 4% of dietary Spirulina was used 123
(Cheong et al., 2015). 124
125
CHLORELLA 126
Chlorella, unicellular, freshwater green microalgae, used mainly for human food and 127
biofuel production, has been also studied in several animal experiments as a good source of 128
good quality protein (about 60%), all essential amino acids, vitamins, minerals, and 129
antioxidants. Chlorella biomass is also a very good source of carotenoids, as it contains 1.2-130
1.3% of total pigments in dry mass (Batista et al., 2013). As was indicated by Kotrbacek et al. 131
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(2015), this microalgae is too expensive to be used as protein material for animals, however, 132
due to the content of many bioactive substances, even a low, economically acceptable dietary 133
level of Chlorella biomass may beneficially affect animal performance. 134
135
Broilers 136
The results of an early study with chickens (Combs, 1952) demonstrated that dried 137
Chlorella, included into the diet at a 10% level could serve as a rich source of certain 138
nutrients, i.e. carotene, riboflavin and vitamin B12, and increased performance in birds when 139
the diet was deficient in these nutrients. Grau and Klein (1957) reported that Chlorella 140
biomass grown in sewage was a rich source of protein and xanthophyll pigments, and used up 141
to 20% dietary level was well tolerated by chicks. Similarly, Lipstein and Hurwitz (1983) 142
found that Chlorella was a suitable protein supplement in broiler diets and, used at 5 or 10% 143
dietary level, had no adverse effect on growth performance. 144
The aim of work by Kang et al. (2013) was to study the effects of the replacement of 145
antibiotic growth promoter by different forms of Chlorella microalgae biomass on 146
performance, immune indices, and intestinal bacteria population. They found that Chlorella 147
used in fresh liquid form at a 1% dietary level beneficially affected BWG, some immune 148
characteristics (number of white blood cells and lymphocytes, plasma IgA, IgM, and IgG 149
concentration), and the intestinal production of Lactobacillus bacteria (Table 2). According to 150
the authors, such an effect of dietary Chlorella is multicomponent, and the fiber fraction, 151
among others a polysaccharide named immurella, glycoprotein, and peptides contained in 152
Chlorella, stimulate the immune response of birds (Kang et al, 2013). Likewise, Kotrbacek et 153
al. (1994) found that broilers fed a diet with 0.5% Chlorella significantly increased the 154
phagocytic activity of leucocytes and lymphatic tissue development. Rezvani et al. (2012) 155
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observed a numerical increase in response to phytohemagglutinin-P which was accompanied 156
by improved FCR in broilers fed with dietary Chlorella biomass. 157
Table 2: Results of selected studies on the effects of Chlorella inclusion to poultry diets 158
Dietary concen-
tration of algae
Animals, duration of the study and
studied characteristics
Results References
Selenium-enriched
Chlorella added in
the amount
supplying 0.3 mg
Se/kg of the diet
Broiler chickens, 1-42 d.
Performance, Se concentration and
activity of glutathione peroxidase in
meat, oxidative stability of meat
lipids.
Positive effect of algae on BWG, Se content
and glutathione peroxidase activity in breast
meat. Decreased oxidation of stored breast
meat of birds fed a diet with Se-enriched
Chlorella.
Dlouha et al.
(2008)
0.07, 0.14, or
0.21%
Broiler chickens, 1-42 d.
Performance, immune response
indices.
Improved FCR and a numerical increase in
response to phytohemagglutinin-P in broilers
fed with dietary Chlorella biomass.
Rezvani et
al. (2012)
1%, to replace
antibiotic growth
promoter (dried
powder, or fresh
liquid Chlorella)
Broiler chickens, 1-28 d.
Performance, immune indices,
intestinal bacteria population.
Fresh liquid Chlorella positively affected
BWG, the immune characteristics and
Lactobacillus bacteria count in the intestine.
Kang et al.
(2013)
0.25, 0.50, 0.75%
(in the form of
spray dried or bullet
milled and spray
dried biomass)
Laying hens, 22-54 wk. Laying
performance, egg quality and
hatchability, nitrogen balance.
Chlorella improved yolk colour, shell
weight and egg hatchability, without
affecting performance and nitrogen balance.
Halle et al.
(2009)
1.25% Laying hens, 25-39 wk. Performance,
egg quality, oxidative stability of
yolk lipids.
Positive effect of Chlorella on egg weight,
FCR, shell quality, yolk colour, yolk lutein
and zeaxanthin, as well as oxidative stability
of yolk lipids of fresh and stored eggs.
Englmaierova
et al. (2013)
1 or 2% Laying hens, 56-63 wk. Egg quality,
yolk carotenoids content, blood
triacylglycerol and cholesterol level.
Chlorella increased yolk carotenoids, lutein,
β-carotene and zeaxanthin content and yolk
colour score. It decreased FI and yolk weight
in hens fed a diet with 2% of Chlorella.
Kotrbacek et
al. (2013)
1% (conventional
or lutein-fortified
Chlorella) (Exp. 1),
0.1 or 0.2% lutein-
fortified Chlorella
in the diet (Exp. 2)
Laying hens, 70-72 wk (Exp. 1), 60-
62 wk of age (Exp. 2). Performance,
egg quality, lutein content in the body
of hens and eggs.
1% conventional or lutein-fortified Chlorella
improved egg production, yolk colour and
lutein content in the serum, liver and
growing oocytes. 0.2% of lutein-fortified
Chlorella increased egg weight, yolk colour
and lutein content in eggs.
An et al.
(2014)
0.1 or 0.2%
(fermented
Chlorella biomass)
Laying hens, 80-86 wk. Performance,
egg quality, intestinal microflora
profile.
Chlorella improved egg production, yolk
colour, Haugh units and lactic acid bacteria
cecal population.
Zheng et al.
(2012)
0.1 or 0.2%
(fermented
Chlorella biomass)
Pekin ducks, 1-42 d. Growth
performance, meat quality, cecal
microflora, tibia bones quality.
Positive effect of Chlorella on BWG, FI,
meat quality and tibia breaking strength,
without differences in cecal microflora.
Oh et al.
(2015)
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Because Chlorella is grown in the presence of high levels of selenite accumulates 159
cellular selenium, there is a growing interest in the use of this algae as a rich source of Se for 160
animals (Kotrbacek et al., 2015). In their study with broilers, Dlouha et al. (2008) found that a 161
dietary addition of Se-enriched Chlorella biomass not only positively affected BWG but also 162
increased Se content and glutathione peroxidase activity in breast meat, as well as decreased 163
the oxidation of breast meat stored in refrigerator. 164
165
Laying hens and other poultry species 166
A positive effect of Chlorella as a feed material for laying hens was found by Halle et 167
al. (2009), who reported that a layers’ diet supplemented with dietary algae had increased egg 168
hatchability, yolk colour and shell weight without affecting egg performance and nitrogen 169
balance. The authors in their next study showed a higher diversity of the microbiota 170
community in the intestinal tract of hens fed a diet of Chlorella biomass and suggested that it 171
could be a reason for the observed positive effects of dietary microalgae on egg quality 172
(Janczyk et al., 2009). The beneficial dietary influence of Chlorella biomass on laying 173
performance, egg quality, and cecal lactic bacteria population was observed by Zheng et al. 174
(2012). Skrivan et al. (2008) reported that Se-enriched Chlorella biomass was a more efficient 175
source of Se than sodium selenite as, despite equal doses of Se supplementation, a higher Se 176
content was found in eggs from hens fed diet supplemented with Chlorella. An et al. (2014) 177
found that a diet supplementation with conventional or lutein-enriched Chlorella biomass may 178
positively affect egg performance, yolk colour and lutein concentration in eggs. As was 179
stressed by the authors, the use of Chlorella biomass is a valuable tool for the production of 180
chicken eggs enriched with natural lutein, of which consumption can prevent macular 181
degeneration in the human ageing population. Results of the study by Englmaierova et al. 182
(2013) showed that the feeding of layers with Chlorella not only increased the concentration 183
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of lutein and zeaxanthin, but also improved FCR, shell quality, and the oxidative stability of 184
yolk lipids of fresh and stored eggs. Also Kotrbacek et al. (2013) reported significantly 185
increased yolk carotenoids’ content as well as yolk colour score in hens fed with Chlorella 186
supplementation, however, dietary microalgae decreased feed intake and yolk weight. 187
188
OTHER MICROALGAE SPECIES 189
Broiler chickens 190
The results of an early study by Lipstein and Hurwitz (1981) showed that microalgal 191
Micractinium biomass could be a useful protein source for broilers, and up to a 6% dietary 192
level had no negative effect on growth performance; however, chickens fed with a higher 193
inclusion level of this algae had a decreased feed intake and BWG. The aim of the study by 194
Austic et al. (2013) was to evaluate the effects of Staurosira sp. biomass incorporation into 195
the broilers’ diet. The obtained results indicated that Staurosira sp. may substitute 7.5% of 196
soybean meal, without a negative influence on performance and plasma and liver biomarkers 197
of chickens when an appropriate amino acids dietary level was maintained. 198
The aim of the study by Waldenstedt et al. (2003) was to evaluate the efficacy of an 199
increasing dietary level of Haematococcus pluvalis meal, used as an astaxanthin source, in 200
broiler chickens infected with Campylobacter jejuni. The authors showed no influence of 201
algal meal on performance, but tissue astaxanthin concentrations were significantly higher 202
with increasing levels of dietary algae. Cecum Campylobacter jejuni was not affected by 203
Haematococcus pluvalis meal inclusion, however a diet with 0.18% algal meal reduced 204
cecum Clostridium perfringens counts. Yan and Kim (2013) showed that an addition of 0.1 or 205
0.2% of Schizochytrium biomass to the diet improved the fatty acid composition of breast 206
meat lipids, without affecting BWG in broilers. 207
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Table 3: Results of selected studies on the effects of other microalgae species’ inclusion into 208
poultry diets 209
Species and
dietary concen-
tration of algae
Duration of the study and studied
characteristics
Results References
Schizochytrium. 0.1
or 0.2%
Broiler chickens, 1-42 d.
Performance, carcass and meat
quality, weight of lymphoid organs,
blood hematology.
No effect of Schizochytrium on
performance, red and white blood cells,
and relative weight of lymphoid organs and
breast meat. Both levels of algae increased
lymphocyte content in blood as well as
increased DHA, and n-3 PUFA content,
and reduced n-6/n-3 PUFA ratio in breast
meat lipids.
Yan and Kim
(2013)
Defatted Staurosira
sp. 7.5 or 10%
Broiler chickens, 2-42 d.
Performance, plasma and liver
biochemical indices.
No negative effect of replacement of 7.5%
soybean meal with defatted Staurosira
biomass when appropriate amino acids
dietary level was maintained.
Austic et al.
(2013)
Schizochytrium sp.
1.7%
Laying hens, 25-31 wk.
Performance, egg quality, yolk
cholesterol content, fatty acids
profile of yolk lipids.
Schizochytrium did not negatively affect
performance and egg quality. Increased
content of n-3 LC PUFA (DHA), without
difference in cholesterol concentration, in
yolks from hens fed with Schizochytrium
biomass.
Rizzi et al.
(2008)
Nannochloropsis
gaditana. 5 or 10%
Laying hens, 27-31 wk.
Performance, yolk colour, fatty
acids profile of yolk lipids.
No significant effect of algal biomass on
performance. Highly increased content of
EPA and DHA in the yolks of hens fed a
diet with Nannochloropsis gaditana.
Bruneel et al.
(2013)
Phaeodactylum
tricornutum,
Nannochloropsis
oculata, Isochrysis
galbana or
Chlorella fusca.
Between 2.5 and
8.6% - to obtain
125 and 250 mg n-3
PUFA per 100 g
feed
Laying hens, 29-35 wk.
Performance, egg quality, yolk
colour, fatty acids profile of yolk
lipids.
No effect of used algal biomasses on
performance and egg quality. The highest
enrichment of n-3 LC-PUFA was obtained
by a dietary supplementation of
Phaeodactylum or Isochrysis biomass.
Increase carotenoid content and yolk
colour in hens fed a diet with
Phaeodactylum, Isochrysis or
Nannochloropsis.
Lemahieu et
al. (2013)
Isochrysis galbana
Between 0.6 and
8.1%– to obtain
between 30 and
400 mg n−3 PUFAs
per 100 g feed
Laying hens, 33-38 wk.
Performance, egg quality, yolk
colour, fatty acids profile of yolk
lipids.
No differences among treatments in
performance and egg quality. A linear
increase of yolk n-3 LC PUFA up to a
dietary level of 2.4% algae biomass.
Higher algae inclusion levels resulted in a
decreased efficiency of n−3 LC-PUFA
incorporation into the yolk and increased
yolk darkness.
Lemahieu et
al. (2014)
Defatted
Desmodesmus spp.
biomass (25%
dietary level) or
Laying hens, 26-40 wk.
Performance, fatty acids profile of
yolk lipids.
Microalgal biomasses increased total
amino acid digestibility, without influence
on performance and majority of
biochemical blood indices.
Ekmay et al.
(2015)
12
full-fatted
Staurosira spp.
(11.7%), with or
without protease.
Schizochytrium sp.
0.5% or 1%
Laying hens, 40-46 wk.
Performance, egg quality, blood
lipid profile, fatty acids profile of
yolk lipids.
Algal biomass increased egg production
and eggshell thickness, improved yolk
colour, increased DHA content and
decreased n-6/n-3 PUFA ratio in yolk
lipids, and reduced serum cholesterol and
triglyceride level.
Park et al.
(2015)
Schizochytrium sp.
0.5%
(simultaneously
with 4% flaxseed)
Japanese quails, 6-24 wk. Laying
performance, egg quality, yolk
cholesterol content, fatty acids
profile of yolk lipids.
Decreased cholesterol content and n-6/n-3
PUFA ratio, increased DHA concentration
in yolk lipids.
Trziszka et al.
(2014)
210
Laying hens and other poultry species 211
Poultry-origin products enriched with n-3 long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids are 212
good examples of functional food, i.e. food that in addition to possessing traditionally 213
understood nutritional value can beneficially affect the metabolic and health status of 214
consumers, thus reducing the risk of various chronic lifestyle diseases (Pietras and 215
Orczewska-Dudek, 2013; Yanovych et al., 2013; Zdunczyk and Jankowski, 2013). The results 216
of several experiments have proved that microalgal biomass, as a rich source of LCPUFAs n-217
3, can be introduced into the diet of laying hens to produce functional food, i.e. designer eggs 218
with naturally increased LCPUFAs n-3 concentration. For instance, Bruneel et al. (2013) 219
reported a highly increased content of DHA in egg yolks of hens fed a diet containing 220
Nannochloropsis gaditana biomass and suggested that this algae may be used as an 221
alternative to current sources of LCPUFA n-3 for the production of DHA-enriched eggs. A 222
similar effect on enhanced DHA yolk concentration had diet supplementation with marine 223
microalgae Schizochytrium limacinum biomass (Rizzi et al., 2009). What is important here is 224
that the sensory characteristics of eggs enriched with LCPUFA n-3 by a dietary addition of 225
Schizochytrium biomass were not deteriorated (Parpinello et al., 2006). The results of the 226
recent work by Park et al. (2015) have shown that the addition of Schizochytrium biomass to 227
13
the layers’ diet not only significantly improved the fatty acids profile of the yolks but also 228
positively affected laying performance and egg quality. 229
Lemahieu et al. (2013) compared the efficacy of four different algae species 230
(Phaeodactylum tricornutum, Nannochloropsis oculata, Isochrysis galbana and Chlorella 231
fusca) in the enrichment of egg yolks in LCPUFA n-3. They reported that the highest 232
enrichment with PUFA n-3, simultaneously with increased yolk colour, was achieved by the 233
dietary supplementation of Phaeodactylum or Isochrysis biomass, so these two microalgae 234
can be used as an alternative to current sources for enrichment of hens’ eggs. Their next 235
studies proved the high suitability of Isochrysis biomass as an LCPUFA n-3 source and 236
showed that a dietary supplementation of 2.4% Isochrysis leads to the highest LCPUFA n-3 237
enrichment in the yolk, and that this supplementation level should be considered as the 238
optimal dose (Lemahieu et al., 2014, 2015). 239
Because of the high content of lipids, certain microalgal species can be used as a 240
suitable material for the production of biofuels. Defatted, after the removal of fat during 241
biofuel production, algal biomass could be a rich source of crude protein in poultry diets. 242
Leng et al. (2014) showed no adverse effect of feeding layers with 7.5% defatted Staurosira 243
spp., used as a partial replacement of soybean meal; however, a higher dietary level of algal 244
biomass (15%) worsened egg performance, feed intake and feed utilisation. The authors 245
indicated that such a decrease in performance was likely due to the very high ash and sodium 246
chloride concentrations of the used microalgal biomass. The results of a recent study by 247
Ekmay et al. (2015) have demonstrated that defatted Desmodesmus and Staurosira spp. 248
biomass can be used in laying hens’ nutrition at relatively high levels (up to 25% in the diet), 249
as a source of well-digested dietary protein, without a negative effect on egg production. 250
The objective of a study with Muscovy ducks was to evaluate the effects of diet 251
supplementation with 0.5% microalgae Crypthecodinium cohnii (Schiavone et al., 2007). 252
14
They demonstrated the positive effect of this microalgal biomass on the fatty acids profile of 253
breast meat lipids, without affecting growth performances and slaughter traits, as well as 254
chemical composition, colour, pH, oxidative stability and sensory characteristics of the breast 255
muscle. An experiment with Japanese quails also showed that diet supplementation with 256
Schizochytrium sp. biomass could be an effective way of bio-fortifying the eggs’ LCPUFA n-257
3, as the yolks of birds fed a diet with 0.5% of this microalgae significantly increased DHA 258
concentration, as well decreased n-6/n-3 PUFA ratio and cholesterol content in yolk lipids 259
(Gladkowski et al., 2014; Trziszka et al., 2014). 260
261
Conclusions 262
Summarising the literature results discussed in this review paper, we can conclude that 263
although chemical composition of different microalgal biomasses is diversified, they can be 264
safely added to poultry diets. Several Spirulina, Chlorella and other microalgae species’ 265
biomasses may be used to increase the pigmentation and nutritional value of meat and eggs 266
for human consumption, i.e. to enhance these products with LCPUFA n-3 and carotenoids, as 267
well as to partially replace conventional protein sources, mainly soybean meal. 268
269
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