Application of microalgae biomass in poultry nutrition

1

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

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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: [email protected] 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%


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

8

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


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%


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)


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)

9

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

10

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%


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%


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.


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%


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



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



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


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%


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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Application of microalgae biomass in poultry nutrition

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