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This study aimed to assess the effectiveness of aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) and Thunbergia laurifolia extract (TLE) in the diets of Cherry Valley ducklings. Our investigation covered growth indicators, blood biochemical indices, meat quality, intestinal morphology, immune response, and CP450 enzyme-related gene expression. We conducted the study with 180 seven-day-old Cherry Valley ducks, randomly divided into five dietary treatments. These treatments included a basal diet without AFB1 (T1 group), TLE, or a commercial binder; the basal diet containing 0.1 mg AFB1/kg (T2 group), 0.1 mg AFB1/kg and 100 mg TLE/kg (T3 group), 0.1 mg AFB1/kg and 200 mg TLE/kg (T4 group), and 0.1 mg AFB1/kg and 0.5 g/kg of a commercial binder (T5 group), respectively. Ducklings fed with the T2 diet exhibited lower final body weight (BW), average body weight gain (ADG), and poor feed conversion ratio (FCR) during the 42-day trials. However, all ducklings in the T3, T4, and T5 groups showed significant improvements in final BW, ADG, and FCR compared to the T2 group. Increased alanine transaminase (ALT) concentration and increased expression of CYP1A1 and CYP1A2 indicated hepatotoxicity in ducklings fed the T2 diet. In contrast, ducklings fed T3, T4, and T5 diets all showed a decrease in the expression of CYP1A1 and CYP1A2, but only the T4 treatment group showed improvement in ALT concentration. AFB1 toxicity considerably raised the crypt depth (CD) in both the duodenum and jejunum of the T2 group, while the administration of 200 mg TLE/kg (T4) or a commercial binder (T5) effectively reduced this toxicity. Additionally, the villus width of the jejunum in the T2 treatment group decreased significantly, while all T3, T4, and T5 groups showed improvement in this regard. In summary, T. laurifolia extract can detoxify aflatoxicosis, leading to growth reduction and hepatic toxicosis in Cherry Valley ducklings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the effects of T-2 toxin and antioxidants on the incidence and severity of angel wing in White Roman geese. Twelve pens were used in this study, and half of them received dietary supplementation of T-2 toxin (10 ppm) and antioxidants (vitamin C 1000 ppm plus Se 0.3 ppm). Each pen contained birds from the normal wing line (NL), the selected angel wing line (AL), and a controlled commercial line (CL). The results showed that there was no significant difference in the body weight, body weight gain, and feed intake of goslings that were supplemented from birth to 6 weeks of age with T-2 toxin and antioxidants. The alkaline phosphatase level in the T-2 toxin group was lower than that in the control group at 4 and 6 weeks. The haemoglobin level in the T-2 toxin group was lower than that in the control group at 6 weeks. There was a significant interaction between T-2 toxin and antioxidants in the severity score of angel wing (SSAW) and incidence of angel wing (IAW) at 6 weeks. In conclusion, the results suggest that a diet supplemented with T-2 toxin does reduce alkaline phosphatase levels. When the diet contained T-2 toxin and antioxidants, the SSAW and IAW increased. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fumonisin B1 (FB1) is among the most common contaminants produced by Fusarium spp. fungus from corns and animal feeds. Although FB1 has been known to cause physical or functional defects of embryos in humans and several animal species such as Syrian hamsters, rabbits, and rodents, little is known about the precise toxicity to the embryos and the underlying mechanisms have not been fully addressed. The present study aimed to investigate its developmental toxicity and potential mechanisms of action on sphingolipid metabolism in Brown Tsaiya Ducks (BTDs) embryos. We examined the effect of various FB1 dosages (0, 10, 20 and 40 µg/embryo) on BTD embryogenesis 72 h post-incubation. The sphingomyelin content of duck embryos decreased (p < 0.05) in the highest FB1-treated group (40 µg). Failure of neural tube closure was observed in treated embryos and the expression levels of a neurulation-related gene, sonic hedgehog (Shh) was abnormally decreased. The sphingolipid metabolism-related genes including N-acylsphingosine amidohydrolase 1 (ASAH1), and ceramide synthase 6 (CERS6) expressions were altered in the treated embryos compared to those in the control embryos. Apparently, FB1 have interfered sphingolipid metabolisms by inhibiting the functions of ceramide synthase and folate transporters. In conclusion, FB1-caused developmental retardation and abnormalities, such as neural tube defects in Brown Tsaiya Duck embryos, as well as are partly mediated by the disruption of sphingolipid metabolisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mycotoxin removers include enzymes and adsorbents that may be used in animal feeds to eliminate the toxic effects of mycotoxins. This study aimed to determine the removability of two different types of mycotoxin removers, adsorbents and enzyme degradation reagents (EDRs), in the simulated gastrointestinal conditions of pigs and poultry. Seven commercial mycotoxin removers, including five EDRs and two adsorbents, were tested in vitro. In this study, the supplemented dosages of mycotoxin removers used in pig and poultry feeds were the commercial recommendation ranging from 0.05% to 0.2%. For pigs, the in vitro gastric and small intestinal simulations were performed by immersing the mycotoxin-tainted feed in artificial gastric juice (AGJ) at pH 2.5 for 5 h or in artificial intestinal juice (AIJ) at pH 6.5 for 2 h to mimick in vivo conditions. For poultry, mycotoxin-tainted feeds were immersed in AGJ for 2 h at pH 4.5 and 0.5 h at pH of 2.5, respectively, to simulate crop/glandular stomach and gizzard conditions; the small intestinal simulation was in AIJ for 2 h at pH 6.5. For the pig, EDRs and adsorbents had deoxynivalenol (DON) removability (1 mg/kg) of 56% to 100% and 15% to 19%, respectively. Under the concentration of 0.5 mg/kg, the zearalenone (ZEN) removability by EDRs and adsorbents was 65% to 100% and 0% to 36%, respectively. For the simulation in poultry, the removability of DON by EDRs and adsorbents (5 mg/kg) was 56% to 79% and 1% to 36%, respectively; for the concentration of 0.5 mg/kg, the removability of ZEN by EDRs and adsorbents was 38% to 69% and 7% to 9%, respectively. These results suggest that EDRs are more effective in reducing DON and ZEN contamination compared to the adsorbent methods in the simulated gastrointestinal tracts of pig and poultry. The recoveries of DON and ZEN of pig in vitro gastrointestinal simulations were higher than 86.4% and 84.7%, respectively, with 88.8% and 85.9%, respectively, in poultry. These results demonstrated the stability and accuracy of our mycotoxin extraction process and in vitro simulation efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]