How to maintain healthy intestinal tract of poultry?

In the poultry industry, the gut healthy (intestinal integrity I2) has always been of concern for poultry producers. Since 1970 to the present, global production of poultry and eggs rapid growth, compared to other aquaculture, poultry farming scale are relatively fast. Keeping broiler intestinal health, maintain their normal digestion and absorption function, not only to ensure good production performance of broilers, and can effectively resist the invasion of the disease.

Factors affecting the gut of poultry varied sound, a survey showed that by the coccidia and intestinal bacteria can not sound so that each chicken feeding costs only 0.65 yuan. Therefore, healthy intestinal deepen understanding and to take effective measures to protect and improve intestinal health is particularly important. This paper describes what is sound and the impact of poultry intestinal gut sound factors and corresponding solutions.
First, what is healthy gut (intestinal integrity I2)?

Sound can be defined as the intestinal gut to maintain intact its structure and function, is simply not subject to all kinds of damage, it is a complete gut. So a complete gut contains what part? There are many natural physiological barrier to help maintain the integrity of the intestinal tract. These barriers can prevent the intrusion of foreign matter and microorganisms (including blood and other organs), to help maintain the integrity of the intestinal structure and function. When malnutrition or some external factors (including stress, toxins, health and environmental mismanagement invasion of pathogenic microorganisms, etc.) affect the body appeared, these barriers would be destroyed, resulting in the gut is not perfect. It helps maintain healthy intestinal tract of poultry natural physiological barriers mainly in the following aspects.

1. mucus (by the intestinal cells secrete viscous liquid substance)
Mucus is a barrier to prevent bacterial and fungal invasion. But some enzymes (as can be decomposed mucus urease) can break this barrier. Cooked poultry feed containing soybean meal may contain urease.
2. intestinal epithelial cells
Intestinal epithelial cells to form a surface having semi-transparency, can selectively allow fluid, electrolyte through, and having the ability to break down and use of nutrients. In the digestive tract, epithelial cells are each part of a continuous physical barrier. When microorganisms and toxins factor makes epithelial cells are disrupted, intestinal sound will be destroyed.

3. The liquid discharge
A large amount of liquid secretions mixture of water and electrolytes. The front portion of the small intestine in a liquid having a protective effect, can make the gut bacteria suspended in a liquid and with the flow of the liquid being rushed to the rear of the intestine.
4. vascularity
Blood vessels in the intestinal epithelial cell layer can be quickly diluted and taken away anything that might undermine the physiological barrier of pathogens or toxins (endogenous or exogenous).

5. The immune cells
The following figure, the function of the intestinal immune cells include: T lymphocytes, B lymphocytes, macrophages, pica cells, dendritic cells, NK cells, goblet cells, plasma cells and M cells. These functional cells in the body to resist the invasion of all kinds of pathogenic microorganisms, maintain healthy gut plays a very important role. Lymphatic poultry main immune organ, associated with the chicken gut lymphoid tissue has a bursa, cecal tonsils, lymphoid aggregates Pyle spots and urethra and anal tract. Klipper and other reports, as well as the form of antigens and antigen degradation rate of absorption in the intestine etc. affect the immune response in poultry. Gastrointestinal antigen to stimulate an immune response adds additional energy consumption. Mucosal lymphoid tissue of the gastrointestinal tract is the first line of defense surface.

Figure 1 intestinal immune cells schematic diagram
6. intestinal normal flora
Maintaining normal intestinal flora in the gut plays a sound irreplaceable role in the destruction of intestinal flora often can not show any clinical symptoms caused by the production and economic losses. Gut commensal bacteria play an active role in maintaining the balance of intestinal flora and stimulate the intestinal wall developmental. Intestinal bacteria present in an amount of significant differences between different intestine, from the duodenum to the end of the gut flora density tends to increase. Intestinal each region has a unique micro-organisms to settle, and with the growth of age-varying complex 9.
Second, causing intestinal unsound various factors
Before the gut healthy variety of factors affecting introduction, we first look at the development of the situation and factors poultry gut:
1. intestinal development
Early in the intestinal tract of poultry embryonic period began development, and its development speed the process along with the incubation time gradually increased, the total weight ratio of the small intestine from the beginning of one percent hatch rapidly increased to 3.5% in the final stages of incubation. After hatching, the small intestine absolute weight of the growth is also significantly faster than other organs, however duodenum, jejunum and ileum length and weight growth, but there are differences. Maturity intestinal development is mainly reflected in digestive enzyme activity and nutrient absorption capacity. Changes in intestinal morphology, biochemistry and molecular biology mainly occurs in 1 to 14 days after hatching, the mature manner similar to newborn mammals.
2. Early Feeding on Intestinal development
In the broiler process, a good start is an important factor in obtaining the best production performance and maximum profit. Generally refers to a good start is crucial early in the first seven days after hatching, at this time brooding brood material conditions and quality of chicks. Studies have shown that, after the initial hatching poultry 48h, maintain intestinal growth nutrients mainly from the yolk sac residue within the abdominal cavity, poultry need to use the energy stored in the yolk sac at this stage, and thereafter nutrition mainly from feed supply. Potturi other reports, feed chickens is to accelerate the development and yolk residual intestinal absorption of "catalyst." After hatching 24-72h, if not timely open food, intestinal development and production performance will be inhibited, and it is difficult to obtain compensatory growth later. In addition, early feeding as soon as possible so that the body can come into contact with the outside world a variety of antigens, and development of the intestinal immune tissue which mature very important, delayed open food is an important cause of stunting poultry immune function. So a good start is crucial.

3. Factors affecting the gut sound
Many factors can affect the sound of the intestinal tract, any direct or indirect damage to the gut and improve the first part of our part of the six factors will affect the intestinal tract healthy, we summed up it can be divided into biological factors, physical and chemical factors, Dietary factors and other factors. Biological factors include intestinal viruses, bacteria, fungi, parasites and other microorganisms are not perfect. Physical and chemical factors including temperature, humidity, light, ammonia concentration, litter quality and some of the stress factors, stress factors and mainly include catch chickens, transport, noise, overcrowding, sudden cold stimulation. Dietary factors include feed ingredients, dietary structure, feed processing, feed pellets and a number of harmful factors, harmful factor also includes a variety of anti-nutritional factors (such as non-starch polysaccharides NSP) and toxin factor. This division is no strict boundaries, the same factors may simultaneously belong to two categories.

Third, the intestine robust solution
Many factors affect the gut sound, thereby affecting the feed conversion rate and production performance, increase our cost of production, the production cycle growth. How to maintain healthy intestinal decision farming has become the key to success. Here are some intestinal sound solutions.
1. Strengthen management
The first is to strengthen the breeder's management to ensure a good breeder nutrition, help to improve the initial weight and uniformity of chicks, the chicks have a good quality assurance to resist some of the biological factors and a number of stress factors. Strengthen management including the provision of high quality starter feed, select good water, good sanitation control, reduce any stress factors, ensure proper stocking density and air quality, and so on. Brood material should avoid using poor fats and high fiber vegetable protein, drinking water should be kept clean and adequate refueling adopt a progressive manner, to prevent refueling of stress, as much as possible to reduce catch the chicken, noise and cold stress. Ensure good litter quality and cleanliness, good control of air temperature and humidity, increase ventilation, manure management in a timely manner, they have a positive role in maintaining low ammonia concentrations.
2. Use a high-quality feed additive
In the past 60 years, trade in poultry production due to drugs and biological products. With the increasing global population, human demand for high quality meat proteins surge. According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) predicts that by 2050, meat, milk and eggs, demand growth 60% 16. This demand will need to expand the scale of farming and improve production performance. Currently, chicken farming industry providing wholesome poultry meat for human protein has reached unprecedented levels, these have largely thanks to the use of high quality feed additives. Here are some you can directly promote intestinal health by preventing some of the feed additive or intestinal pathogens infringement.
Coccidiostats and ionophore anticoccidial drugs: poultry coccidiosis is an intestinal damage a universal single-cell parasite. A devastating loss to the poultry industry. In addition, coccidiosis also often lead to the occurrence of 17 other bacterial enteritis. These diseases are caused by intestinal unsound to poultry producers economic losses over 0.1 euros on average per bird. To avoid these losses, we must add coccidiostats to poultry feed to maintain good performance. Since the 1980s, it has not been introduced on the market new coccidiostat, which in large part because ionophore anticoccidial drugs in controlling coccidiosis aspect is very fruitful.

Antibiotic growth promoters: antibiotics as feed additives began in the early 1950s, its purpose is to promote growth and improve feed efficiency, reduce mortality and improve reproductive performance. Since expanding the scale of farming, farming costs continue to decrease, so that the number of animal products increased exponentially, the cost of production also fell by nearly 20 years several times. United States and some other developed countries, the use of antibiotics in animal husbandry accelerators least have 50 years of history 18. However, almost with the use of antibiotic growth promoters while about the negative effects of antibiotics to promote the growth report agents also continue to make. Currently on a global scale, many scientists are looking to develop alternative antibiotic growth promoters 19.
Enzymes: Enzymes in recent years has made great progress as antibiotic growth promoters of alternative products. EU countries using the grain as the type and source of vegetable protein feed ingredients than any other region of the world. Enzyme digestion of feed by promoting degradation leads to excessive intestinal microbial fermentation and lead to digestive disorders of substance, thus contributing to the promotion of sound animal intestines. Although the enzyme can not completely replace antibiotics, but it controls and lower feed costs in the role is very important.
Probiotics: Probiotics are live microorganisms, directly after feeding to animals, can have a beneficial impact on its host animal by improving the intestinal microbial balance. Common probiotic products are: lactic acid producing bacteria, such as Lactobacillus, Bifidobacterium and Streptococcus; yeast such as Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Aspergillus. Although probiotics can be used instead of antibiotics to maintain intestinal healthy, but severe infections in poultry occurs, probiotics can not replace antibiotic used for treatment. However, the use of probiotics help to restore damaged due to the use of antibiotics and intestinal flora.
Prebiotics: Prebiotics is an oligosaccharide products, it has been beneficial bacteria digestive tract directly fermentable substrates, promote their growth and proliferation, regulate micro-ecological balance of the digestive tract. Oligosaccharides used for feed additives are mainly of two types: mannooligosaccharide yeast extract (MOS) and the plant extract FOS (FOS). MOS on livestock has a dual effect, both inhibit and reduce animal intestinal pathogens, it can enhance the immune function of animals. Thus, in animal feed, typically mannooligosaccharides products as a natural antibiotic growth promoters of alternative products for livestock and poultry production.
Acidifiers: acidifiers / short chain fatty acids include, volatile fatty acids and weak acids. These organic acids may be sound in the maintenance of animal gut play a role, it can reduce the intestinal pH (6.0 or less) to reduce pathogens (such as Salmonella and E. coli) in the intestinal wall of colonization, and to promote the growth of normal flora. So far, the use of an organic acid as a growth promoter is also in a state of no rules, the market is full of complex organic products from a single acid using a combination of simple specifications have not yet formed.
Toxin binder: Binder toxin can be combined, such as molds and mycotoxins in the feed or adsorption of harmful substances, the elimination of these substances on intestinal damage, as in animal feed, these substances on animal health and production are invisible threats or potential risks, they can accumulate and contaminate the human food chain in animal products.

Trace elements: trace element additive is also known as auxin. Usually we need to add trace elements iron, copper, manganese, zinc, cobalt, iodine, and selenium. Because the amount of rare trace elements, trace elements and basal diet containing a large amount of change, but also difficult to analyze, it is customary to raising standards according to the requirements added, and the basis of the content of the diet as a "safe level" process . Currently on the market of organic trace minerals in poultry production and more common, it is characterized by good stability, high bioavailability, low toxicity, less pollution, and good palatability.

Conclusion
In summary, many factors affect the delicate balance of the intestinal tract of poultry, reduced feed conversion rate and production performance, increase production costs, extend the production cycle. Therefore, in the actual production, pay close attention to the health of the intestinal tract of poultry is to solve the most important problem in poultry breeding, poultry maintain healthy gut is to achieve an important guarantee for the sustainable development of the poultry industry.