الفهرس 
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Abstract
This work was conducted at Nutrition and Clinical Nutrition Department, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Alexandria University to investigate the possible effect of essential oil mixture without or with sodium butyrate supplementation on broiler chicks’ performance concerning growth parameters, immune response, carcass quality, intestinal morphology and microbiology as well as some blood biochemical indices.
A total of 320 two-day-old Cobb broiler chicks of mixed sex were used in this experiment. They were obtained from a local Egyptian private hatchery. The broiler chicks were randomly allotted into 8 equal groups (40 chicks/group) fed on the basal diet without any supplementation (group 1) and consider as control, or with 72, 144 mg/liter water or with 20 mg essential oil mixture/kg diet (groups 2 – 4 respectively) and the other four group fed as mentioned previously plus 0.75 sodium butyrate/kg diet. The obtained results are summarized in the following:
• At the end of the experimental period (6th week), it was observed that EOM supplementation through drinking water (72 or 144 mg/liter) or broiler ration (20mg/kg) non significantly improved final body weight by about 0.1%, 2.3%, 7.04% respectively when compared with control. Also, dietary sodium butyrate supplementation without or with 72 and 144 mg of EOM/liter of drinking water non significantly increased final body weight by about 2.96%, 2.44% and 2.21% respectively when compared with broiler chick group fed on the same diet without sodium butyrate addition. In contrast, dietary sodium butyrate supplementation with EOM at 20 mg/kg diet non significantly reduced final weight by about 6.14% when compared with broiler chick group fed on the same diet without sodium butyrate addition.
• Generally, addition of EOM without or with sodium butyrate addition non significantly improved total body gain throughout the whole experimental when compared with control. The highest weight gain (2246.23 g/bird) was obtained by broiler chick group fed on the basal diet supplemented by sodium butyrate and lower EOM (72 mg/ water), followed by broiler chick group (2244.97 g/ bird) which fed on the basal diet supplemented by sodium butyrate and higher EOM (144 mg/ water), followed by broiler chick group (2211.43 g/bird) which fed on basal diet supplemented by EOM at 20 mg/kg diet, while the lowest body gain obtained by broiler chick (2142.86 g/bird) which fed on the basal diet without any supplement.
• It was observed that lower inclusion level of EOM (72mg/liter) numerically reduced feed intake throughout the whole experimental period by about 5.8% when compared with the control, while higher inclusion level (144 mg/liter) of oily EOM and inclusion of powder EOM through broiler ration numerically increased feed intake through the whole experimental period by about 1.3% and 1.1% respectively when compared with the control. Moreover, sodium butyrate supplementation alone or with lower level of EOM through drinking water slightly increased feed intake while sodium butyrate supplementation with higher level of EOM in drinking water or with EOM in the broiler diet numerically reduced feed intake throughout the whole experimental period when compared with broiler chicken group fed on the same diet without sodium butyrate addition.
• It was found that EOM supplementation at both levels (72 or 144mg) in drinking water or through broiler ration non significantly improved FCR, PER and EEU values through the whole experimental period when compared with the control. On the other hand, sodium butyrate addition had no clear effect on FCR, PER or EEU values of broiler chicken throughout the whole experimental period when compared with broiler chicken group fed on the same diet without sodium butyrate addition except with high level of water EOM supplementation significantly improved FCR, PER and EEU values when compared with broiler chick group fed on the same diet without sodium butyrate.
• It was observed that EOM supplementation at both levels in drinking water or through broiler diet non significantly increased blood serum protein and globulin concentrations at 21th and 42th days of broiler age when compared with the control. Moreover, sodium butyrate addition improved blood serum protein and globulin concentrations when compared with broiler chick group fed on the same diet without sodium butyrate addition.
• It was observed that EOM supplementation at low or high levels in drinking water or through broiler diet decreased blood serum triglycerides and total cholesterol concentrations at 21th or 42th days of broiler age when compared with control one. Moreover, sodium butyrate addition had no clear effect of blood serum triglycerides and total cholesterol when compared with broiler chicks group fed on the same diet without sodium butyrate addition. On the other hand, it was observed that EOM supplementation without or with sodium butyrate addition decreased blood serum LDL and improved HDL concentrations during 21th or 42th days of broiler age when compared with control.
• Inclusion of EOM in drinking water at low level (72mg/liter) or through broiler feed (20mg/Kg) non significantly improved phagocytic activity and index at 21th and 42th day of broiler age when compared with the control, while higher inclusion level of EOM in drinking water non significantly reduced phagocytic activity and index of broiler chicken at 21th or 42th days of broiler age when compared with the control.
• EOM supplementation in drinking water or broiler diet without or with sodium butyrate addition boost antibody production against ND vaccine during the last three weeks of broiler production.
• EOM supplementation at low levels in drinking water or through broiler feed without or with sodium butyrate addition improves nutrient digestibility when compared with the control.
• In the current study, carcass weight and carcass yield were not affected by treatments in broiler chicks. Moreover, it was observed that EOM supplementation without or with sodium butyrate addition numerically reduced abdominal fat weight and relative weight when compared with control one.
• Histomorphological alterations in the broiler chicken supplemented with essential oil mixture (EOM) at 72 or 144 mg/ liter water or 20mg/kg diet significantly (P≤0.05) increased villi length at 3rd week of chick age by about 20.9%, 16.5% and 12.7% respectively when compared with broiler chick group fed on the basal diet without any supplement. However, water supplementation of EOM at low and high level significantly increased villi length at the end of the experiment (6th week of chick age) by about 33.6% and 20.6% respectively, while dietary supplementation of EOM non significantly (P≥0.05) improved mid ileal villi length at 6th week of broiler chick age by about 6.2% when compared with broiler chick group fed on the basal diet without any supplement.
• Inclusion of sodium butyrate in broiler chick diet at 750mg/kg alone significantly decreased villi length at 3rd week of age by about 11.3% but highly increased villi length at 6th week of age by about 6.4% when compared with broiler chicks group fed on the basal diet without supplementation. However, butyrate had no significant effect of mid ileal villi width at both 3rd and 6th weeks of age when compared with broiler chicks group fed on the basal diet without supplementation.
• Essential oil supplementation at 72 or 144 mg /liter of drinking water or 20 mg of EOM/kg of broiler diet reduced total bacterial count of ileo-cecal content at 3rd week of chick age by about 35.3%, 52.9% and 57.7% respectively when compared with broiler chick group fed on the basal diet without any supplement. Moreover, EOM significantly (P≤0.05) reduced total bacterial count at 6th week of age by about 57.9%, 67.9% and 61.3% respectively.
• It was observed that lower EOM water supplementation (72mg/liter) increased lactobacillus counts during 3rd and 6th weeks of age when compared with broiler chick group fed on the basal diet without any supplement. However, higher level of EOM water supplementation and feed addition reduce lactobacillus number. On the other hand, sodium butyrate addition in combination with essential oil through drinking water improved proliferation of lactobacillus in broiler intestine when compared with broiler chick group supplemented with EOM only.
• The highest Income / cost % was obtained by broiler chick group fed on the basal diet with 20 mg of EOM/kg diet (31.7%), followed by broiler chicks group fed on the basal diet with 72 mg EOM/liter water (29.5%), while the lowest values obtained by broiler chick group fed on the basal diet supplemented by higher level of EOM in the drinking water (15.7%).