Student Competition: Metabolism and Nutrition, Feed Additives

Student Competition: Metabolism and Nutrition, Feed Additives 34 Effects of a direct-fed microbial on live performance of broilers challenged with an avian pathogenic Escherichia coli. Nathaniel W. Barrett*1, Miranda M. Ritzi1, Rami A. Dalloul1, Nicholas Evans1, Jason Sewell2, and Michael E. Persia1, 1Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, 2Nutraferm Inc., North Sioux City, SD. A direct fed microbial was evaluated using a broiler avian pathogenic Escherichia coli (APEC) challenge. The product is a single strain of Lactobacillus plantarum (GB-LP1). In total, 432 d-old male broiler chicks were randomly assigned to 8 replicates of 9 birds for 6 treatments. Treatments included a non-challenged positive control (PC), a challenged non-treated negative control (NC), challenged with an antibiotic (BMD), and challenged with 0.05, 0.10, or 0.20% GB-LP1. Chicks were housed in raised-wire cages in an environmentally controlled room for the 28-d period with ad libitum access to feed and water. Challenge protocol included oral gavage with 108 cfu of APEC in 0.5 mL on d 7. Mortality were recorded daily and all dead birds were necropsied. Feed intake and body weight were recorded to calculate mortality corrected feed conversion ratio (FCR). On d 14, 3 birds/pen were euthanized to determine spleen weight (SW). Data were analyzed using one-way ANOVA with protected LS means to separate means with significance assigned at P = 0.05. Body weight was not affected by treatment, but APEC challenge increased FCR over the PC (P = 0.05), with inclusion of BMD returning FCR to PC values. GB-LP1 treatment did not improve FCR and the 0.10% GB-LP1 resulted in FCR that was higher than the NC (P = 0.05). There were 7 mortality attributed to APEC in the infected non-treated NC and no mortalities in the non-infected PC birds. Treatment of birds with BMD, 0.05 and 0.20% GB-LP1 resulted in moderate reductions in mortality (5 each), but the 0.10% GB-LP1 resulted in only 2 mortality attributed to APEC challenge. At D14, SW (% of body weight) was increased by APEC (P = 0.05) with the BMD and 0.05 and 0.20% GB-LP1 returning SW to an intermediate weight. Interestingly, the 0.10% GB-LP1 resulted in the highest spleen weight at 14 d. In conclusion, these data suggest that 0.10% GB-LP1 might be upregulating the immune response (increased spleen weight and FCR) of birds resulting in increased survivability when challenged with APEC. Key Words: broiler, avian pathogenic Escherichia coli, direct-fed microbial, performance 35 The effect of synbiotic supplementation on immune parameters and Salmonella colonization in layer hens pre and post Salmonella challenge. Amanda E. Luoma*1, G. Raj Murugesan2, Michaela Mohnl3, Revathi Shanmugasundaram1, Ashley Markazi1, and Ramesh Selvaraj1, 1Department of Animal Sciences, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, 2Biomin America Inc., San Antonio, TX, 3Biomin Holding GmbH, Getzersdorf, Austria. This experiment studied the effects of a synbiotic (PoultryStar ME) containing 4 live strains isolated from adult chickens (Lactobacillus reuteri DSM16350, Enterococcus faecium DSM16211, Bifidobacterium animalis DSM16284, and Pediococcus acidilactici DSM16210) with prebiotic (fructooligosaccharide) on layer production and local immune parameters following an experimental Salmonella infection. The synbiotic was added to the feed at a rate of 1 g/kg from day-of-hatch until 3 wk of age, reduced to 0.5 g/kg until the end of wk 23, and increased back to 1 g/kg inclusion until the end of the project at wk 28. At 24 wk of age,

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birds were challenged with 250 µL of 109 cfu of Salmonella enterica Enteritidis. Birds were killed and samples were collected on d −5, 3, 8, 10, 17, 22, 24, and 30 post-infection. Supplementation of synbiotic decreased (P < 0.05) age of bird at first egg as well as increased (P < 0.05) weekly and total egg counts. Synbiotic increased (P < 0.05) bile Salmonella-specific IgA concentrations over the control at 10 and 22 d post-challenge, increased (P < 0.05) cecal tonsil IL10 mRNA expression nearly 8-fold at 3 d post-challenge, and decreased (P < 0.05) cecal tonsil TNFα mRNA expression at 8 and 22 d post-challenge 4- and 8-fold respectively. Synbiotic also increased (P < 0.05) average relative percent of Pediococcus acidilactici in the ceca post challenge, although it did not alter (P > 0.05) BW or plasma Salmonella-specific IgA concentrations. We concluded that supplementing synbiotic to layer diets can improve egg production parameters, increase Salmonella-specific IgA concentrations, and alter local cytokine profile pre and post Salmonella infection. Key Words: probiotic, immunity, Salmonella, gut health, egg production 36 Evaluation of an encapsulated sodium butyrate on broiler performance following challenge with a nalidixic acid-resistant Salmonella Typhimurium. Jundi D. Liu*1, Douglas E. Cosby2, Nelson A. Cox2, and Justin Fowler1, 1University of Georgia, Athens, GA, 2US National Poultry Research Center, USDA-ARS, Athens, GA. A study was designed to evaluate 3 different encapsulations of sodium butyrate (CMA, CMP, and CMS; King Techina Group) on broiler growth performance and intestinal morphology following challenge with a nalidixic acid resistant Salmonella Typhimurium (STNAR). A total of 384 Cobb-Cobb male birds were placed 8 birds per pen into 6 replicates for each of the 8 treatments. Treatments were arranged as a 2 × 3 factorial (500 and 1000 ppm of each product) plus 2 control treatments (nonchallenged and challenged control). Birds were orally gavaged with 0.1 mL of a 107 cfu/mL STNAR at d 4. Ceca were collected from 5 birds per pen on d 11 and analyzed for colonization of STNAR. Body weight and feed intake were recorded on d 4 and 11. On d 11, tissue samples were collected for quantifying ileal histology. Data were analyzed as a 2 × 3 factorial arrangement, with the effect of the Salmonella challenge evaluated via ANOVA using GLM procedures of SPSS. On d 4, there was a significant main effect (P ≤ 0.05) for BW, with the CMP product having the highest value. BW, FCR and Productivity Index showed no significant differences between treatments after the Salmonella challenge. Results from the Salmonella recovery data indicate that the challenge had a significant (P ≤ 0.05) but mild effect because it did not affect the performance variables but did result in a significant (P ≤ 0.05) increase in log cfu between challenged and unchallenged treatments (3.72 vs 1.42). However, there were no effects between treatments in the birds who had been challenged. Both CMA at 500 ppm and CMP at 1000 ppm showed higher villus height (P ≤ 0.05) than the challenged control. Although this study demonstrates that sodium butyrate has an effect on BW for broilers at an early age, there was no difference between the 3 coating techniques following the challenge with STNAR. There were improvements to intestinal morphology during this time, indicating that sodium butyrate positively influences intestinal absorptive surface area. Key Words: sodium butyrate, gut health, Salmonella, broiler

Poult. Sci. 95(E-Suppl. 1)

37 Effects of antibiotic alternatives and Eimeria challenge on growth and carcass yields of male broilers. Xi Wang*, E. David Peebles, Aaron S. Kiess, Kelley G. S. Wamsley, and Wei Zhai, Department of Poultry Science, Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, MS. Effects of antibiotic (bacitracin), anticoccidial (narasin), and antibiotic alternative (Bacillus subtilis and zinc) feed additives provided from D0 to 54 on the growth performance and carcass yields of commercial broilers with or without an Eimeria-challenge were determined. A total of 1,344 one-day-old male Ross × Ross 708 broilers were administered a coccidiosis vaccine and then were randomly distributed into 12 treatments (8 replication pens/treatment and 14 chicks/pen). The 12 treatments were assigned in a 6 (dietary treatment) × 2 (Eimeria-challenged or not) factorial arrangement. The 6 dietary treatments were: a control diet (corn and soybean-meal basal diet), a probiotic diet (basal diet + 1011 cfu of Bacillus subtilis/ton of feed), a zinc diet (basal diet + 100 ppm zinc), a probiotic and zinc combined diet (basal diet supplemented with both probiotics and zinc), an anticoccidial diet (basal diet + 54 g of narasin/ ton of feed), and a practical diet (basal diet + 54 g of narasin and 50 g of bacitracin/ton of feed). At d 21, each chick in the Eimeria-challenged groups was gavaged with a 10× dose of a commercial vaccine containing live Eimeria oocytes. Two-way ANOVA was used to test the main and interactive effects of dietary and Eimeria challenge treatments. An Eimeria challenge increased D15 to 28 and D29 to 40 feed conversion ratio and overall mortality (P = 0.041, 0.034, and 0.007 respectively). As compared with the other diets, the anticoccidial and practical diets decreased feed conversion ratio and increased BW gain and feed intake from d 15 to 28 (all P < 0.001). These diets also increased carcass, breast, and drumstick weights at d 40, and decreased overall mortality (P = 0.001, 0.002, 0.006, and 0.050, respectively). Compared with control diets, the probiotics diets lowered BW gain from d 15 to 28 (0.026 respectively). Growth performance from d 41 to 54 and carcass yield on d 54 were not affected by any of the dietary additives. The addition of narasin in the diets benefited early growth and decreased mortality. However, the effects of the dietary additives on growth diminished during the latter phase of grow-out. Key Words: bacitracin, broiler, Bacillus subtilis, narasin, zinc 38 Response of broilers to refined functional carbohydrates (RFC) dosage and early coccidiostat withdrawal. Coltin T. Caraway*1, Satid Auttawong1, Sangita Jalukar2, and John T. Brake1, 1Prestage Department of Poultry Science, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 2Arm and Hammer Animal Nutrition, Princeton, NJ. The dose response of male broilers to refined functional carbohydrates (RFC; Aviator SCP, Arm and Hammer Animal Nutrition, Princeton, NJ) in diets with or without salinomycin was evaluated in a 2 × 4 factorial arrangement where 48 pens were used with 6 replicates per interaction. Broilers were subjected to 1 of 4 dosimetry schemes. Schemes for addition of RFC per ton were as follows in the starter, grower, and finisher diets, respectively: (1) 50 g, 50 g, 50 g; (2) 50 g, 100 g, 200 g; (3) 100 g, 100 g, 100 g, and (4) 200 g, 100 g, 50 g. All diets included salinomycin for the first 16 d, at which point salinomycin was removed from the diets of half of the experimental pens, thus creating the factorial. Body weight and feed consumption were determined at 16, 28, 35, and 49 d of age and feed conversion ratio (FCR) calculated. Data were analyzed using PROC GLM of SAS 9.4 with P ≤ 0.05 being accepted as statistically significant. For 0–16 d, FCR of broilers in scheme 1 (1.38 g:g)


was improved (P ≤ 0.05) compared with schemes 3 and 4 (1.42 and 1.44 g:g, respectively) with scheme 2 intermediate (1.41 g:g). Scheme 1 also increased BW (2,387 g; P ≤ 0.01) at 35 d compared with schemes 3 and 4 (2,287 and 2,304 g), with scheme 2 (2,331 g) intermediate. The 35 d BW results were independent of salinomycin withdrawal and remained numerically apparent to 49 d. As expected, salinomycin withdrawal after 16 d resulted in poorer FCR (P ≤ 0.01) from 16 to 28 d (1.59 vs. 1.53 g:g), 29–35 d (1.84 vs. 1.77 g:g), and cumulatively to 49 d (1.80 vs 1.76 g:g). Worsened FCR due to salinomycin withdrawal resulted in an increased (P ≤ 0.05) feed intake throughout the study, thus resulting in similar BW. The effects of salinomycin withdrawal on FCR were observed across all RFCs schemes with the exception of scheme 1 from 16 to 28 d, where FCR was not negatively affected. Results from this study indicated that an excessive dosage of RFCs to young broilers might not be beneficial, particularly in the starter diet, where amounts greater than 50 g may result in a negative FCR response. Key Words: refined functional carbohydrates, broiler, coccidiostat, salinomycin 39 Effect of corn distillers solubles oil on broiler chicken skin pigmentation and plasma carotenoid content. Marta Viguie*, Kimberly A. Livingston, Ramon Malheiros, and Peter R. Ferket, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC. Corn distillers solubles oil (CDSO) is a co-product of the corn ethanol distillation process and may have value as a carotenoid source to enhance pigmentation of broiler skin besides its dietary energy value. The objective of this study was to examine the bioavailability of CDSO both by skin pigmentation and by the concentration of carotenoids in blood plasma. A trial was performed using broiler chicks from 1 to 28 d. Basal diets were formulated using white corn and soybean meal to minimize dietary carotenoids, diets were supplemented with 0, 25, 50, 75, and 100% CDSO added in place of 4% soybean oil. To serve as positive controls, Yellow Pixafil Liquid-LZ (Alcosa Biotec, S.A., Apaseo El Grande, Mexico) or Oro Glo 15 Liquid (Kemin, Des Moines, IA) supplied the same level of total carotenoids as the 100% CDSO diet. Ross 344×708 chicks were randomly assigned among 7 replicates/treatment (10 chicks/replicate) with ad libitum access to feed and water in Alternative Design cages. Feed intake and body weight were recorded weekly. Foot-shank color values (a*, b*, and L) were evaluated using a Minolta colorimeter at 14, 21, and 28 d of age. At 28 d of age blood samples were taken, blood was spun down and the plasma was extracted. Carotenoid levels in plasma were determined using spectrophotometry utilizing the iCheck (DSM Nutritional Products). Data were analyzed as a one-way ANOVA using JMP (SAS Institute, Cary, NC). No differences were observed in body weight, feed intake, feed conversion ratio, or mortality among any of the treatments. Shank yellowness (b*) increased linearly as dietary CDSO level increased (P < 0.001), and 100% CDSO resulted in similar pigmentation as the commercial products (P > 0.05). Plasma carotenoid concentration increased linearly as dietary CDSO increased (P < 0.01) and the 100% CDSO treatment was not different from that of either of the positive controls (P < 0.05). In conclusion, CDSO inclusion increased shank pigmentation and plasma carotenoid levels linearly. In addition, 100% CDSO results in similar shank pigmentation and plasma carotenoids as commercially available products up to 28 d of age. Key Words: corn distillers solubles oil, carotenoids, skin pigmentation, broiler

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40 Effect of a Bacillus-based direct fed microbial on broiler growth performance in low and high DDGS diets. Cody A. Flores*1, Hunter G. Walters1, Nathan Augspurger2, and Jason T. Lee1, 1Department of Poultry Science, Texas A&M AgriLife Research, College Station, TX, 2JBS United Inc., Sheridan, IN. This experiment evaluated the effect of a Bacillus-based direct-fed microbial (DFM) on broiler growth performance in low and high dried distillers grains with solubles (DDGS) diets. Four dietary treatments were fed in a randomized complete block 2 × 2 factorial design with 10 replications/treatment. Each pen consisted of 42 Cobb 500 males, totaling 1,680 broilers for a 42-d evaluation period. Non-medicated control diets comprised a standard corn/soy diet and were manufactured at the low level of DDGS (5%, starter; 7.50%, grower; 10%, finisher) and the high level of DDGS (10%, starter; 15%, grower; 20%, finisher) and were fed individually or supplemented with a Bacillus-based DFM delivering 7.35 × 107 cfu/kg. Three diet phases were fed throughout the trial: starter (d 0–14, crumble), grower (d 15–28, pellet), and finisher (d 29–42, pellet). Body weight (BW) and feed consumption measurements were taken at the conclusion of each phase and were used to calculate body weight gain (BWG), feed intake (FI), and feed conversion ratio (FCR). All birds were spray vaccinated with a commercially available coccidiosis vaccine in a commercial spray cabinet and allowed to preen 1 h before randomization and placement. No significant differences in BW or BWG were observed between the low or high levels of DDGS or with DFM supplementation. When evaluating feed intake (g/bird/d), a DDGS main effect was observed cumulatively through d 42 with the high level of DDGS yielding a higher intake than the low level of DDGS. A DDGS main effect was also observed during finisher phase FCR as well as cumulative FCR through d 42 with the high level of DDGS producing increased FCR values compared with the low level of DDGS. A DFM main effect was observed for starter phase FCR as well as d 0–28 and d 0–42 FCR. A significant interaction was observed for cumulative FCR through d 28. One-way analysis indicated that the non-medicated control with high level of DDGS significantly increased FCR compared with all other treatments. In conclusion, the high level of DDGS negatively affected broiler performance by increasing FCR. Also, the inclusion of the Bacillus-based DFM decreased FCR compared with the non-medicated control. Key Words: droiler, DDGS, direct-fed microbial, performance 41 Withdrawn 42 The changes of short-chain fatty acids and cecal bacteria in response to a lignocellulose supplementation in wheat or corn based diet. Sarbast Khidher Kheravii*, Robert A. Swick, Mingan Choct, and Shu-Biao Wu, University of New England, Armidale, NSW, Australia. This study evaluated the response of broiler cecal bacteria to a lignocellulose-rich fiber (OptiCell) in wheat or corn based diet. A total 912 day-old male Ross 308 chicks were allocated to 48 floor pens. Birds were randomly allocated to 8 treatments with 6 replicate pens each with 19 birds. The experimental employed a 2 × 2 × 2 factorial arrangement of treatments. Factors were grain basal diet (wheat or corn), OptiCell (10 kg/Mt) with or without, and Zn-bacitracin (Albac 150) with or without. On d 24, the cecal contents were collected from 2 birds to analyze short-chain fatty acids (SCFA) and bacteria (Bifidobacterium spp., Lactobacillus spp., Campylobacter spp., Clostridium spp., Salmonella spp., Enterobacteriaceae, and total anaerobic bacteria). The results showed that birds fed wheat-based diets had higher amount of acetic acid and 14

butyric acid compared with those fed corn diets. The concentration of isobutyric and isovaleric acids in cecal content of birds fed corn were higher than those fed wheat-based diets. The supplementation of diets with OptiCell significantly increased the concentration of lactic acid. A grain × OptiCell interaction was detected for butyric acid. Birds fed wheat-based diet supplemented with OptiCell had higher concentrations of butyric acid compared with birds fed corn-based diet. The Zn-bacitracin had no effect on SCFA. Cecal formic, propionic, valeric, and succinic acids were not affected by OptiCell or grain type. Birds fed corn-based diets had increased counts of bifidobacteria, lactobacilli, clostridia, and total anaerobic bacteria and reduced counts of Campylobacters and Salmonella compared with those fed wheat-based diets. OptiCell had no effect on the quantity of cecal bacteria. However, there was an interaction between OptiCell and grain type on Bifidobacterium. Birds fed corn diets containing OptiCell had numerically increased the number of bifidobacteria. Birds fed wheat-based diets containing OptiCell had lower numbers of bifidobacteria. This study suggests that dietary OptiCell would be beneficial to birds by increasing the concentration of cecal lactic and butyric acids. Key Words: cecal bacteria, short-chain fatty acids, OptiCell, lignocellulose 43 Effect of GalliPro supplementation on performance and jejunum morphology of broiler challenged with heat stress. Matheus de P. Reis*1, Elizabeth Pritchett2, Sara Jastrebski2, Antonio G. Bertechini1, Paulo B. Rodrigues1, and Carl J. Schmidt2, 1Universidade Federal de Lavras, Lavras, MG, Brazil, 2University of Delaware, Newark, DE. Heat stress (HS) reduces poultry performance, affects their overall welfare and reduces profitability. Furthermore, chronic HS could also modify the intestinal epithelium morphology, altering villus height (VH) and crypt depth (CD) changing the stability of intestine surface absorption. GalliPro is a probiotic used successfully in commercial poultry production globally and a modification on intestine morphology health status may occur, with GalliPro supplementation, which could reduce the effects of the HS on poultry yield. One trial was conducted to evaluate the effect of supplementation of GalliPro (Bacillus subtilis strain DSM 17299), to broiler chickens, heat stressed or not. Four hundred eighty male broiler chickens (Ross 708) were raised in 24 experimental units, assigned to 2 treatments (12 repetitions each), from d 1 to 21 (with and without probiotic supplementation). At d 22, an additional factor was implemented (HS) until the end of the experiment on d 42. Eight experimental units were maintained without heat stress (4 repetitions with and 4 repetitions without probiotic supplementation) and 16 experimental units were set with heat stress (8 repetition with and 8 repetition without probiotic supplementation), performing an unbalanced factorial design 2 × 2. Performance was collected weekly through measurement of average feed intake (AFI), average body gain (ABG), and feed conversion ratio (FCR). Jejunum segment were also collected to perform measurements of VH, CD, and VH:CP. An alteration on CD occurred on d 21 and CD and VH for d 42 (P < 0.05), suggesting an increase on surface absorption for GalliPro-supplemented birds, which may be responsible for an improvement of FCR (P < 0.05) observed at d 21 until the end of the experiment. Supplemented birds also had an improvement of the ABG measurement (P < 0.05) at d 35 and 42. The influence of probiotic supplementation on intestine surface of birds may lead to an improvement of performance and a reduction of production cost, also for broilers challenged with high temperature. Key Words: probiotic, Bacillus subtilis, DSM 17299, microbiota, poultry Poult. Sci. 95(E-Suppl. 1)

44 Emulsifier additive improves energy utilization in broiler chickens. Levy Teixeira*1, Lislaine Batista1, Luiz Rombola2, Marc Rovers2, Arno Aa2, and Antonio Bertechiini1, 1Federal University of Lavras, Lavras, Minas Gerais, Brazil, 2Orffa, Werkendam, the Netherlands. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of an emulsifieradditive on nutrient digestibility and nitrogen-corrected apparent metabolizable energy (AMEn) in broilers receiving diets with different soybean oil levels in the starter (14–21 d) and finisher (35–42 d) phases. Two trials were conducted using mash corn/soybean/meat bone mealbased diets with or without inclusion (350 g/ton) of emulsifier (Excential Energy Plus) and 5 levels of soybean oil (0, 1.5, 3.0, 4.5, 6.0%). A total of 600 male Cobb 500 in the starter and 360 male broilers in the finisher phase were allocated (metabolic cages) in a complete randomized design with 10 treatments and 6 reps each. Total excreta were collected from d 19 to 21 and from d 40 to 42 to determine AMEn, apparent digestibility coefficients for dry matter (ADCDM) and crude protein (ADCCP). Data were analyzed using ANOVA (PROC GLM/SAS) and CONTRAST test among treatments. In the starter phase, there were no effects (P > 0.05) for ADCCP and ADCDM. AMEn was improved (P < 0.05) by 59, 67 and 71 kcal/kg when emulsifier was used in the treatments with 3.0, 4.5, and 6.0% of soybean oil. In the finisher phase, there was no effect (P > 0.05) for ADCCP. However, emulsifier increased (P < 0.05) ADCDM in the treatments with 3.0 and 6.0% of oil (76.48 vs 74.33; 76.47 vs 73.61). The AMEn was improved (P < 0.05) by 86, 76 and 92 kcal/ kg when emulsifier was used in the treatments with 3.0, 4.5, and 6.0% of soybean oil. In conclusion, Excential Energy Plus can significantly improve AMEn when higher levels of oil are used in the diets. Key Words: feed additive, broiler, nutrient digestibility, AMEn, oil level

45 Effect of in-feed supplementation of phytochemicals on the response of hepatic transcriptome to aflatoxin in broilers. Hsinbai Yin*1, Indu Upadhyaya1, Chihung Chen1, Abhinav Upadhyay2, Jill Wegrzyn1, Michael J. Darre1, Dan J. Donoghue2, Annie M. Donoghue3, and Kumar Venkitanarayanan1, 1University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 2University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, 3University of Arkansas, USDA-ARS, Fayetteville, AR. Aflatoxins (AF) are hepatotoxic metabolites produced by Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus, which frequently contaminate a variety of chicken feed ingredients. Contamination of poultry feed with AF is a major concern to the poultry industry, because aflatoxicosis in chickens results in significant economic losses due to decreased chicken performance and increased mortality. Our previous research revealed that in-feed supplementation of 2 GRAS (generally recognized as safe)-status phytochemicals, namely carvacrol (CR) and trans-cinnamaldehyde (TC), significantly reduced aflatoxicosis in broiler chickens and decreased AF-induced toxic effect to chicken liver. In this study, we investigated the effect of in-feed supplementation of CR and TC on the response of hepatic transcriptome to AF in broiler chickens. Chicken livers were collected from birds fed with AF contaminated feed (~2.5 ppm) with or without supplementation of 0.75% CR or TC for 3 wk. Wholetranscriptome profile of liver samples from control and treated chickens were analyzed using RNA-seq on Illumina NextSeq 500 platform. Briefly, total RNA was extracted from chicken liver (5 liver samples/ group). RNA-seq libraries were created and run on 4 flow cell lanes to produce over 481M reads totaling ~37 Gb of sequence. Approximately 29,181 predicted transcripts were de novo assembled, of which 156 genes had significant differential expression in at least one pair-wise comparison between control and treatment groups. Results revealed that numerous genes associated with the metabolism of lipid and protein were significantly downregulated by AF diet compared with control; however, supplementation of CR and TC modulated the expression of these genes. Genes identified through transcriptome analysis provide candidates for further study of aflatoxicosis in chickens and elucidate the potential protective mechanisms to liver mediated by CR and TC from aflatoxicosis in chickens. Key Words: aflatoxin, transcriptome, phytochemical, chicken


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