Application of composite plant extract in improving production performance of Xiaoshan chicken and improving intestinal health

Abstract

The invention discloses an application of a composite plant extract in improving the production performance of Xiaoshan chicken and improving intestinal health. Different amounts of composite plant extracts are added into the Xiaoshan chicken feed, meanwhile, the growth performance, serum biochemical indexes, intestinal morphological structures, ileum immune indexes and antioxidant indexes of Xiaoshan chickens which are not added and are fed with different composite plant extracts are measured and compared, and finally, intestinal microorganisms are analyzed, so that the Xiaoshan chickens fed with the Xiaoshan chickens fed with the Xiaoshan chickens fed with the Xiaoshan chickens fed with the Xiaoshan chickens fed with different composite plant extracts are obtained. Comparison shows that the 400mg / kg compound plant extract can improve the growth performance of Xiaoshan chicken, and the compound plant extract has an application prospect in the Xiaoshan chicken breeding field by adjusting the immune performance and the oxidation resistance of ileum and improving the intestinal mucosa morphology and the cecum flora structure.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to a new use of an extract in animal husbandry, and in particular to an application of a composite plant extract in improving the production performance of Xiaoshan chickens and improving intestinal health. Background Art

[0002] Xiaoshan chicken is a local breed for both meat and eggs. It has the characteristics of tender meat, strong physique and rich nutrition. It is an important genetic resource of local chicken breeds in my country and has the potential for meat breeding. Local chicken breeds can adapt and survive in free-range feeding systems and show good body condition. However, with the continuous increase in market demand, it is necessary to expand the scale through intensive breeding. Under the intensive production mode, a large number of free radicals will be produced in the chickens due to physiological stress, environmental pressure and high-density production, which will have an adverse effect on the health of chickens. Excessive oxidative stress will also weaken the immune response, making the chickens more vulnerable to pathogens, thereby directly reducing the production performance of chickens and increasing economic losses. In recent years, with the increasing attention of consumers to food safety and nutritional health, how to use natural alternatives to antibiotics without the use of antibiotics and chemical synthetic drugs to improve the immunity of poultry has become a research hotspot in the breeding industry. At present, antimicrobial peptides, probiotics, acidifiers and plant active ingredients have been widely studied and are considered to be promising alternatives to antibiotic growth promoters. As a natural additive derived from plants, plant extracts are rich in active substances such as volatile oils, alkaloids, terpenes, and saponins. Plant extracts are characterized by low residue and no toxic side effects. Adding them to animal feed can play the role of antibacterial, anti-oxidation, and immune regulation. They also have the advantages of protecting animal intestinal health, promoting animal growth, and improving production efficiency. Cinnamaldehyde, also known as cinnamaldehyde, is an aromatic aldehyde organic compound and the main active ingredient in cinnamon oil. It has been widely used as an alternative product in animal husbandry because of its safety, easy degradation, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and regulation of sugar and lipid metabolism. Adding cinnamaldehyde to the feed improves the barrier function, reduces the expression of inflammatory factors, and is beneficial to the carcass quality and intestinal health of broilers in combination with vitamin C. Adding monolaurin and cinnamaldehyde can effectively increase the weight of chickens, improve VH / CD in the duodenum and jejunum, increase serum total protein and albumin content, and improve total antioxidant capacity. Thymol is a natural monoterpene phenolic compound, an essential oil extracted from the thyme plant, with a variety of biological and pharmacological properties, including anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antibacterial, antifungal and antitumor potential, improving intestinal integrity and reducing intestinal damage by regulating immune response and redox homeostasis. Adding thymol and carvacrol to broiler diets can improve their growth performance and jejunal morphology, nutrient absorption and transport capacity, as well as ileal morphology, barrier function and inflammatory status.

[0003] Studies have found that supplementation with EO synthesized from carvaldehyde, thymol, and cinnamaldehyde can help improve ADG and ADFI from day 0 to day 28, reduce stress, improve the development of ileal epithelial cells, and inhibit the inflammatory TLR4 / NFκB pathway in the ileum. Although the three plant extracts of carvaldehyde, thymol, and cinnamaldehyde have shown beneficial effects on antioxidant and immune functions in some experiments as single components or in combination, the effects of their combined addition on the antioxidant and immune functions of the intestinal mucosa of poultry are still unclear. Compared with other intestinal segments, the intestinal mucosa of the ileum and cecum is rich in immune cells, which may play a key role in immune function. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the effects of the combined addition of cinnamaldehyde and thymol on the antioxidant and immune functions of the intestine of Xiaoshan chickens, which will provide new theoretical basis and practical guidance for the research and development of poultry feed additives, and also help meet the market demand for natural, healthy, and high-quality poultry products. Summary of the invention

[0004] The purpose of the present invention is to provide an application of a composite plant extract in the field of Xiaoshan chicken breeding, so as to improve the growth performance of Xiaoshan chicken by regulating the immune performance and antioxidant capacity of the ileum, and improving the intestinal mucosal morphology and cecal flora structure.

[0005] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides an application of a composite plant extract in the field of Xiaoshan chicken breeding, the application comprising any one of the following:

[0006] Improve the growth performance of Xiaoshan chicken;

[0007] Improve the immune performance of Xiaoshan chicken ileum;

[0008] Improve the antioxidant capacity of Xiaoshan chicken ileum;

[0009] Improve the cecal flora structure of Xiaoshan chickens.

[0010] Preferably, the above-mentioned composite plant extract is added to the feed in an amount of 400 mg / kg of feed.

[0011] The present invention also provides a method for improving the growth performance and intestinal health of Xiaoshan chickens, specifically, adding a composite plant extract into the Xiaoshan chicken feed for feeding Xiaoshan chickens, wherein the preferred addition amount is 400 mg / kg feed.

[0012] The present invention has the following advantages:

[0013] The present invention discloses for the first time the application of a composite plant extract in the field of Xiaoshan chicken farming, and obtains an optimal addition amount by comparing different addition amounts, specifically, adding 400 mg / kg of the composite plant extract to Xiaoshan chicken feed can improve the growth performance of Xiaoshan chickens, and improve the intestinal mucosal morphology and cecal flora structure by regulating the immune performance and antioxidant capacity of the ileum. The technical solution provided by the present invention has significant application prospects in the farming of Xiaoshan chickens. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0014] Figure 1 This is the intestinal microbial Beta diversity analysis obtained based on the bray_curtis distance algorithm in the present invention.

[0015] Figure 2 This is the analysis result of the intestinal microbial species level composition in the present invention.

[0016] Figure 3 This is the result of the LDA effect value difference analysis of the intestinal microbial markers in the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0017] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention are described clearly and completely below. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of them. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0018] Note: The experimental methods in the following examples are conventional methods unless otherwise specified, and are performed according to the techniques or conditions described in the literature in the field or according to the product instructions. The materials, reagents, etc. used in the following examples are all commercially available unless otherwise specified.

[0019] Experimental Example 1

[0020] Materials used in this experiment:

[0021] Composite plant extract: Commercially available, it is a Chinese herbal plant extract processed from compound extracts of plants such as Atractylodes lancea, Patchouli, cinnamon, and oregano. The effective measurable ingredients are cinnamaldehyde ≥1.5% and thymol ≥1.0%, and it is in powder form after microencapsulation technology.

[0022] Xiaoshan chicken: 100-day-old healthy Xiaoshan chicken.

[0023] Basic feed: Granular compound feed prepared with reference to the "Chicken Feeding Standards" (NY / 33-2004) and the "China Feed Composition and Nutritional Value Table (2021, 32nd Edition)". Its composition and nutritional level are shown in Table 1.

[0024] Table 1 Basic feed composition and nutritional level (air-dried basis)

[0025]

[0026] The premix provides VA8000 IU, VB24.5 mg, VB52 mg, VB60.2 mg, VB 12 0.02mg, VD32800 IU, VE 23IU, VK32.6 mg, biotin 0.0075mg, folicacid 0.05mg, pantothenic acid 15mg, nicotinic acid 30.5mg, Cu (as coppersulfate) 17.5mg, Fe (as ferrous sulfate) 60mg, Mn (as manganese sulfate) 65mg, Zn (as zinc sulfate) 70mg, I (as potassiumiodide) 0.75mg, Se (as sodium selenite) 0.2mg.

[0027] 1. Grouping and feeding management

[0028] 384 healthy Xiaoshan chickens aged 100 days were selected and randomly divided into 4 groups, with 8 replicates in each group and 12 chickens in each replicate. The control group (BC group) was fed with a basic diet without compound plant extract (see Table 1), and the experimental groups were fed with a diet with 200, 400, and 600 mg / kg compound plant extract (CPE) added to the basic diet, respectively, which were recorded as CPE 200 group, CPE400 group, and CPE 600 group. The pre-feeding period was 5 days and the experimental period was 60 days. The feeding experiment was carried out in a chicken farm in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province. The chicken houses were disinfected and ventilated, and the feeding conditions were unified. Double-layer cages were used, with 1 chicken in each cage, 12 hours of natural light throughout the day, and 4 hours of artificial lighting. The experimental chickens were fed once a day (08:00) and had free access to food and water.

[0029] 2. Sample collection and processing

[0030] Fasting began at 20:00 on the day the experiment ended. After fasting for 12 hours, one Xiaoshan chicken was randomly selected from each replicate, weighed on an empty stomach, and then 5 mL of blood was collected from the subwing vein before slaughter. The serum was separated after centrifugation at 3000r / min for 15 minutes, and the blood was divided into EP tubes and stored at -80°C. About 1 cm of the middle part of the duodenum, jejunum and ileum was taken, gently rinsed with saline, and fixed in 4% paraformaldehyde solution. The remaining part of the ileum was cut open along the longitudinal axis and spread flat, and the ileal mucosa was scraped with a slide, collected in a 1.5 mL centrifuge tube and numbered, temporarily stored in liquid nitrogen, and then transferred to a -80°C refrigerator. 1 cm of the middle part of the cecum was taken, placed in an EP tube, and stored at -80°C.

[0031] 3. Index determination

[0032] The data collation and analysis in this experiment are as follows: SPSS27.0 statistical software was used to perform one-way ANOVA on the data of each group, and Duncan's method was used for multiple comparison test. The results were expressed as mean value and standard error of the mean (SEM). P < 0.05 indicated a significant difference, and P < 0.01 indicated an extremely significant difference.

[0033] (1) Effect of CPE on growth performance of Xiaoshan chickens

[0034] After the pre-feeding period, the chickens were fasted overnight and weighed at 06:00 the next day at 105 days old. The feed intake of each replicate was recorded daily. The whole flock was fasted and weighed every 15 days (at 120, 135, 150, and 165 days of age) to calculate the average daily feed intake (ADFI), average daily weight gain (ADG), and feed-to-gain ratio (F / G). The results of the effect of CPE on the growth performance of Xiaoshan chickens are shown in Table 2.

[0035] Table 2 Effect of CPE on growth performance of Xiaoshan chicken

[0036]

[0037]

[0038] Note: Data in the same row with the same letter or no letter indicates no significant difference (P>0.05), different lowercase letters indicate significant difference (P<0.05), and different uppercase letters indicate extremely significant difference (P<0.01). The same applies below.

[0039] As shown in Table 2, compared with the BC group, the BW and ADFI of Xiaoshan chickens in the CPE200, CPE400, and CPE600 groups at each age were significantly increased (P<0.01), and the ADG of CPE200 and CPE400 at 105-120 days of age, CPE200 and CPE600 at 150-165 days of age, and CPE400 at 120-135 days of age were significantly increased (P<0.01), and the ADG of CPE400 at 135-150 days of age and 150-165 days of age was significantly increased (P<0.05). The addition of compound plant extracts had no significant effect on the F / G of Xiaoshan chickens at each stage (P>0.05).

[0040] (2) Effects of CPE on serum biochemical parameters of Xiaoshan chickens

[0041] The total protein (TP), albumin (ALB), globulin (GLB), and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) in serum were determined using Mindray BS-420 fully automatic biochemical analyzer. The levels of immunoglobulin A, immunoglobulin G, immunoglobulin M, interleukin-1β, interleukin-2, interleukin-6, interleukin-10, tumor necrosis factor α, and interferon-γ in serum were determined using Huawei Delang DR-200BS enzyme label analyzer. All indicators were determined using kits from Beijing Huaying Biotechnology Research Institute. The results are shown in Table 3.

[0042] Table 3 Effects of CPE on serum biochemical parameters of Xiaoshan chickens

[0043]

[0044]

[0045] As shown in Table 3, compared with the BC group, the levels of IL-1β, IL-2, IL-6, TNFα and IFN-γ in the serum of Xiaoshan chickens in each CPE group were significantly increased (P>0.01), among which the ALT content in the serum of Xiaoshan chickens in the CPE400 group was significantly increased (P>0.01), while the TP and GLB contents in each CPE group were significantly decreased (P<0.05). Compared with the BC group, there were no significant differences in ALB, IgA, IgG and IgM in the serum of Xiaoshan chickens in each CPE group (P>0.05), indicating that CPE can regulate the immunity of Xiaoshan chickens.

[0046] (3) Effects of CPE on the intestinal morphology of Xiaoshan chickens

[0047] After the fixed intestinal segments were trimmed, dehydrated, embedded, sliced, and stained, multiple villus and crypt images were selected under an upright white light photography microscope of model Eclipse Ci-L, and the intestinal villi, crypts, and intestinal wall were identified using Visiopharm software, and the villus height, crypt depth, and villus-crypt ratio (V / C) were measured. The analysis and measurement results are shown in Table 4.

[0048] Table 4 Effects of CPE on the intestinal morphology of Xiaoshan chickens

[0049]

[0050]

[0051] As shown in Table 4, compared with the BC group, the height of the jejunal villi of the Xiaoshan chicken in the CPE400 group increased significantly (P<0.05), and was significantly higher than that in the CPE200 group and the CPE600 group (P<0.01); the depth of the jejunal crypts of the Xiaoshan chicken in the CPE600 group increased significantly (P<0.05). Compared with the BC group, there were no significant differences in the height of the villi, crypt depth, V / C value of the duodenum and ileum of the CPE groups and the V / C value of the jejunum (P>0.05). The results showed that the addition of CPE 400 mg / kg in the diet significantly increased the height of the villi of the jejunum, while the addition of CPE 600 mg / kg significantly increased the depth of the crypts of the jejunum of the Xiaoshan chicken, indicating that the addition of 400 mg / kg of CPE can effectively improve the intestinal morphology of Xiaoshan chickens.

[0052] (4) Effects of CPE on the immune function and antioxidant capacity of the ileal mucosa of Xiaoshan chickens

[0053] The collected ileal mucosa samples were thawed, 0.1g tissue was weighed for each sample, cut into pieces with ophthalmic scissors, 0.9ml of 0.01mol / L PBS solution was added, homogenized with a TGrinder homogenizer, and centrifuged for 20min at 4°C and 3000r / min. The supernatant was collected, and the immunoglobulin content (sIgA, IgG) in the ileal mucosa was detected according to the kit instructions (Beijing Huaying Biotechnology Institute), and the antioxidant properties of the ileal mucosa (MDA, GSH-Px, CAT, SOD) were detected according to the kit instructions (Beijing Huaying Biotechnology Institute). The effects of CPE on molecular indicators related to the immune performance of the ileal mucosa of Xiaoshan chickens are shown in Table 6, and the effects of CPE on enzymes related to the immune performance of the ileal mucosa of Xiaoshan chickens are shown in Table 7.

[0054] Table 6 Effect of CPE on ileal mucosal immune performance of Xiaoshan chicken

[0055]

[0056]

[0057] Table 7 Effect of CPE on ileal mucosal immune performance of Xiaoshan chicken

[0058]

[0059] As shown in Table 6, compared with the BC group, the contents of IL-β, IL-2, IL-6, IL-10 and TNFα in the ileal mucosa of Xiaoshan chickens in each CPE group were significantly increased (P<0.01), the content of IFN-γ in the CPE200 and CPE600 groups was also significantly increased (P<0.01), and there was no significant difference in TP content (P>0.05).

[0060] As shown in Table 7, compared with the BC group, the contents of SOD, MDA and CAT in the ileal mucosa of each CPE group were extremely significantly reduced (P<0.01), the content of T-AOC in the CPE400 group and the CPE600 group was extremely significantly reduced (P<0.01), the content of GSH-Px in the CPE600 group was extremely significantly reduced (P<0.05), and that in the CPE200 group was significantly reduced (P<0.05).

[0061] (5) Effects of CPE on intestinal microorganisms of Xiaoshan chickens

[0062] Metagenomic sequencing and analysis of cecal contents were performed using the platform of Paisono Biotechnology Co., Ltd. (three replicates per treatment, a total of 12 samples). Genomic DNA was extracted using the TruSeq Nano DNALT sample preparation kit (Illumina, Carlsbad, CA). DNA libraries included fragmentation, cleanup, end repair, 30-end adenylation, and DNA fragment enrichment using the KAPA library quantification kit (Boston, USA). The raw data were trimmed, filtered, and annotated using the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes. The abundance distribution of species was calculated at the genus and species levels. The abundance profiles and functional abundance profiles of species were analyzed using R software (v3.2.0), followed by alpha- and beta-diversity analysis (PCA and principal coordinate analysis). Finally, Kruskal_Wallis analysis was used to distinguish the top 10 differential genera and species.

[0063] 1) Quality control of intestinal metagenomic DNA sequencing data

[0064] In this experiment, 8 Xiaoshan chickens from each of the BC group and CPE400 group were selected as experimental samples for DNA extraction and detection. The DNA concentration and total amount met the requirements for library construction, and the results are shown in Table 8 below. On average, each sample obtained about 9.4GB of data, and the total data volume was about 150GB. The proportions of Q20 and Q30 were above 98% and 95%, respectively. The results showed that the filtered data had good quality and could be used for subsequent analysis.

[0065] Table 8 DNA sequencing data quality control

[0066]

[0067] 2) Analysis of Alpha and Beta Diversity of Intestinal Microorganisms

[0068] Alpha diversity analysis: As shown in Table 9, the Alpha diversity analysis index (chao1, ACE, Simpson, Shannon, Pielou's_e / Observer species) showed that there was no significant difference in the cecal microbial diversity between the two groups of Xiaoshan chickens (P>0.05), among which ACE and Chao1 indexes represent microbial abundance, Shannon and Simpson indexes represent microbial diversity, Pielou's_e characterizes the uniformity of the microbial community, and Observer species is the number of classified OTUs. It can be seen that the microbial abundance, diversity and number of OTUs in the CPE400 group are higher.

[0069] Table 9 Effect of CPE on α-diversity of cecal microorganisms in Xiaoshan chicken

[0070]

[0071]

[0072] Beta diversity analysis: Results Figure 1 As shown in the figure, based on the bray_curtis distance algorithm, the stress value is 0.113, which can accurately reflect the true distribution of the community composition of each sample. As can be seen from the figure, based on the ellipse confidence of 0.95, the distance between the samples in the BC group is far, the distribution of the samples in the CPE400 group is relatively concentrated, and the distance between the samples in the BC group and the CPE400 group is far, indicating that the addition of CPE in the diet has changed the composition differences of the intestinal microbial population to a certain extent.

[0073] 3) Analysis of differences in intestinal microbial species

[0074] Composition of intestinal microbiota at species level:

[0075] According to the QIIME 2 standard, each sample was clustered at 97% similarity to obtain the OTU level Venn diagram ( Figure 2 A, B, C) and the composition of cecal microorganisms at the phylum, genus, and species levels ( Figure 2 The number of OUTs obtained by the two groups at different species levels is shown in Figure 2. Figure 2-As shown in A, B, and C: at the phylum level, a total of 178 OTUs were obtained, with 165 shared OTUs, and 4 and 9 OUTs unique to the BC group and CPE400 group, respectively; at the genus level, a total of 7590 OTUs were obtained, with 6619 shared OTUs, and 409 and 562 OUTs unique to the BC group and CPE400 group, respectively; at the species level, a total of 23489 OTUs were obtained, with 20836 shared OTUs, and 1148 and 1505 OUTs unique to the BC group and CPE400 group, respectively.

[0076] Depend on Figure 2 -D shows that the top 10 dominant bacterial phyla at the phylum level in the samples of the BC group and the CPE group are Firmicutes A, Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes, Actinobacteria, Proteobacteria, Firmicutes C, Desulfobacteria, Cyanobacteria, Spirochaetes, and Synergistrum. There is no difference in the composition of cecal microorganisms at the phylum level between the two groups. Figure 2 -E shows that at the genus level, the top 10 microorganisms with a relative abundance of more than 1% in the BC group are Bacteroides 2009 (7.10%), Bacteroides (3.51%), Mediterranean Bacillus (3.43%), Faecalibacterium (2.46%), Prevotella (2.10%), Jimmyella (1.88%), CAG-266 (1.94%), Blautia (1.35%), Thermobacterium (1.65%), and Parabacteroides (1.5 7%); the top 10 microorganisms with a relative abundance of more than 1% in the CPE400 group were Bacteroides 2009 (5.33%), Bacteroides (3.48%), Mediterranean Bacillus (3.39%), Faecalibacterium (2.18%), Prevotella (2.44%), Gemmyces (2.55%), CAG-266 (1.60%), Blautia (2.14%), Thermobacterium (1.67%), and Parabacteroides (1.60%). Figure 2-F shows that at the species level, the top 10 microbial compositions in relative abundance of group BC are Gemmiger stercoripullorum, Blautia merdipullorum, Merdimonas massiliensis, and Faecousia intestinavium of Firmicutes A, Peptococcus UMGS1590sp900552455 of Firmicutes B, Acidinococcus CAG-266sp000436095 of Firmicutes C, Prevotella avicola, Bacteroidetes Phocaeicolabarnesiae, Phocaeicola sp900066445, Phocaeicola faecigallinarum), accounting for 0.54%, 0.53%, 0.60%, 0.23%, 0.58%, 1.79%, 0.92%, 0.76%, 0.68% and 0.90% respectively; the top 10 microorganisms in relative abundance of CPE400 group were Gemmiger stercoripullorum, Blautia merdipullorum, Merdimonas massiliensis and Faecousia intestinavium of Firmicutes A, Peptococcus (UMGS1590 sp900552455) of Firmicutes B, Acidinococcus (CAG-266sp000436095) of Firmicutes C, Prevotella (Prevotella avicola), Bacteroidetes (Phocaeicolabarnesiae, Phocaecolasp900066445, Phocaeicola faecigallinarum), accounting for 0.91%, 0.85%, 0.71%, 0.93%, 0.69%, 1.49%, 0.31%, 0.46%, 0.52%, 0.28%, respectively. Among them, the Faecousia intestinavium in Firmicutes A in the CPE400 group was significantly higher than that in the BC group, with a very significant difference (P<0.01), and the Blautiamerdipullorum had a significant difference (P<0.05).

[0077] Gut microbial diversity analysis (LEfSe):

[0078] LEfSe analysis is a differential analysis method that can directly perform differential analysis on all categories at the same time. The LDA value distribution bar chart of significantly different species is used to show the significantly enriched species in each group (note that down-regulated species are not shown) and their importance. The LDA effect value bar chart of the marker is obtained as follows: Figure 3 As shown. Figure 3 It can be seen that based on the LEfSe and LDA values ​​> 2, the species differences between the groups were analyzed, and a total of 20 iconic differential microorganisms were found. Among them, the BC group was mainly composed of Firmicutes A and Firmicutes C, with a total of 16 markers, mainly concentrated in some genera in the Oscillospiraceae family; the CPE400 group was mainly composed of Firmicutes C, Bacteroidetes and Cyanobacteria, with a total of 4 markers, of which 2 markers belonged to Firmicutes A, but belonged to different family levels, namely Oscillospiraceae and Ruminococcaceae.

[0079] The results of intestinal microbial analysis showed that there was no significant difference between the BC group and the CPE400 group at the phylum and genus levels. At the species level, the number of Faecousia intestinavium in Firmicutes A in the CPE400 group was significantly higher than that in the BC group, with a very significant difference, and there was a significant difference in Blautiamerdipullorum, indicating that CPE changed the intestinal microbial structure of Xiaoshan chickens.

[0080] In summary, the present invention can improve the growth performance of Xiaoshan chicken by adding 400 mg / kg of the composite plant extract to the feed, and improve the intestinal mucosal morphology and cecal flora structure by regulating the immune performance and antioxidant capacity of the ileum.

[0081] Although the content of the present invention has been described in detail through the above preferred embodiments, it should be appreciated that the above description should not be considered as a limitation of the present invention. After reading the above content, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and substitutions of the present invention will occur. Therefore, the protection scope of the present invention should be limited by the appended claims.

Claims

1. Application of a composite plant extract in the field of Xiaoshan chicken breeding.

2. The use according to claim 1, characterized in that: The application includes any of the following: Improve the growth performance of Xiaoshan chicken; Improve the immune performance of Xiaoshan chicken ileum; Improve the antioxidant capacity of Xiaoshan chicken ileum; Improve the cecal flora structure of Xiaoshan chickens.

3. The use according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The compound plant extract is added in the feed in an amount of 400 mg / kg of feed.

4. A method for improving the growth performance and intestinal health of Xiaoshan chickens, characterized in that: By adding compound plant extracts to the Xiaoshan chicken feed.

5. The method according to claim 4, characterized in that The added amount of the composite plant extract is 400 mg / kg feed.

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