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Supplementing dietary rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) powder and vitamin E in broiler chickens: evaluation of humoral immune response, lymphoid organs, and blood proteins

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Abstract

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effect rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) powder (RP) and vitamin E (VE) at different levels on humoral immunity of broilers during a 42-day production cycle. A total of 270 1-day-old male chicks were assigned to nine groups with three replicates of ten birds each, and diets were supplemented with 0, 0.5, or 1.0% RP and 0, 100, or 200 mg/kg VE, respectively. Commercial-inactivated vaccines against avian influenza (AI) and Newcastle disease (ND) viruses, and living infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) vaccine were administered by spray method. Sheep red blood cells (SRBC) were administered subcutaneously. Blood samples were collected from birds 1 week after each vaccination to determine antibody titers. At the 42nd day, blood samples were also assessed for globulin level, and lymphoid tissues (thymus, spleen, and bursa) were weighed. Neither antibody titers against viruses nor lymphoid tissues weight were affected by RP and/or VE (P > 0.05) treatments. However, broilers supplemented with 0 mg/kg of VE had lower antibody titers against SRBC than those fed 100 mg/kg of VE (P < 0.05) at the 24th day. A significant RP × VE interaction effect (P < 0.05) on plasma globulin level was observed. The findings of our study suggest that dietary RP and VE additives can interact and modulate the humoral immunity of broilers, but not sufficiently to improve antibody titers against specific virus during a 42-day production cycle.

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Acknowledgements

Financial support by Rasht Branch, Islamic Azad University, grant number 4.5830, is gratefully acknowledged.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Animal Science, Rasht Branch, Islamic Azad University, Rasht, Iran

    Hossein Rostami & Alireza Seidavi

  2. Department of Veterinary Science, Rasht Branch, Islamic Azad University, Rasht, Iran

    Mohammad Dadashbeiki

  3. Agricultural and Natural Resources Research Center of Guilan, Rasht, Iran

    Yadollah Asadpour

  4. Department of Veterinary Science, University of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, Quinta de prados, Vila Real, Portugal

    João Simões

  5. College of Animal Science and Technology, Nanjing Agricultural University, Weigang, Nanjing, China

    Assar Ali Shah

  6. Section of Veterinary Science and Animal Production, Department of DETO, University of Bari Aldo Moro, Valenzano, Bari, Italy

    Vito Laudadio & Vincenzo Tufarelli

  7. Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Bari Aldo Moro, Valenzano, Bari, Italy

    Caterina Losacco & Antonella Perillo

Authors
  1. Hossein Rostami
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  2. Alireza Seidavi
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  3. Mohammad Dadashbeiki
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  4. Yadollah Asadpour
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  6. Assar Ali Shah
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  7. Vito Laudadio
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  8. Caterina Losacco
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  9. Antonella Perillo
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  10. Vincenzo Tufarelli
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Correspondence to Vincenzo Tufarelli.

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Responsible editor: Philippe Garrigues

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Rostami, H., Seidavi, A., Dadashbeiki, M. et al. Supplementing dietary rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.) powder and vitamin E in broiler chickens: evaluation of humoral immune response, lymphoid organs, and blood proteins. Environ Sci Pollut Res 25, 8836–8842 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-018-1209-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-018-1209-x

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