Effects of dietary mannan oligosaccharide and herbal essential oil blend supplementation on performance and oxidative stability of eggs and liver in laying hens

The role of dietary supplemental mannan oligosaccharide (MOS) and an essential oil blend (EOB) on performance of laying hens, and susceptibility of egg yolk and hen liver to lipid oxidation were examined. Four hundred and thirty-two 52-week old Lohmann laying hens were divided into three groups and fed a basal diet containing no antioxidant as control (CNT), basal diet plus 1 g/kg MOS and basal diet with 24 mg/kg EOB, for a 10-week experimental period. Supplementation of diet with MOS and EOB improved egg production rate and eggshell weight, but did not influence other performance or egg quality traits. MOS and EOB provided higher antioxidant activity in egg yolk than the control regimen at all storage time periods. EOB also retained the oxidative stability of liver by measuring malondialdehyde (MDA) levels. Liver antioxidant enzymes, including superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathion peroxidase (GSH-Px), were higher in birds fed the additives. MOS and EOB tended to increase serum glucose concentration (6.2% and 8.8%, respectively) while they slightly decreased triglycerides (11.0% and 4.8%, respectively) without affecting cholesterol level. Relative weight of pancreas and spleen were not affected by dietary treatments whereas diet supplemented with EOB significantly increased liver weight. The findings of this study suggest that EOB and MOS could act as free radical scavengers that enhance performance and also increase eggshell weight.