Effects of Dietary Spray-Dried Bovine Plasma Protein on Broiler Growth Performance and Breast-Meat Yield

2005 Poultry Science Association, Inc.

Effects of Dietary Spray-Dried Bovine Plasma Protein on Broiler Growth Performance and Breast-Meat Yield K. Bregendahl,*,1 D. U. Ahn,* D. W. Trampel,† and J. M. Campbell‡

Primary Audience: Nutritionists, Commercial Poultry Producers, Veterinarians SUMMARY Dietary spray-dried plasma protein (SDPP) is effective in improving growth performance of pigs raised in unsanitary conditions. However, little is known about the efficacy of SDPP in improving growth performance and carcass characteristics of broiler chickens. In the present study, graded levels of bovine SDPP (0 to 2% of the diet) were fed to male broiler chickens (Ross 308) from 1 to 42 d of age. The study was divided into 2 experiments, each with 480 chickens, with identical experimental designs. Broilers in the second experiment were raised on the soiled litter from the first experiment, thereby creating 2 environments with different levels of sanitation. Broilers fed the control diet in experiment 2 had higher mortality, lower rate of body weight gain, and were less uniform than broilers fed the control diet in experiment 1, suggesting that reusing the soiled litter in experiment 2 resulted in a relatively more unsanitary environment. Dietary bovine SDPP did not affect growth performance or carcass characteristics in the first experiment, but improved growth rate, feed conversion, breast-meat yield (as a percentage of carcass weight), and flock uniformity of the broilers in the second, more unsanitary, experiment. In conclusion, dietary SDPP, fed throughout the growth period, improved growth performance and breast-meat yield of broilers raised in an unsanitary environment. Key words: broiler, bovine spray-dried plasma protein, growth performance, breast-meat yield, flock uniformity 2005 J. Appl. Poult. Res. 14:560–568

DESCRIPTION OF PROBLEM In the United States, commercial broiler chickens are raised in floor pens and the litter commonly reused between flocks after the wet or crusty top layer has been removed. This management practice has economic benefits, but exposes the chickens to bacteria and parasites in the litter from the previous flock [1, 2, 3], in 1

turn creating an unsanitary environment. Dietary spray-dried plasma protein (SDPP) has been shown to improve the growth performance of pigs when raised in an unsanitary environment [4, 5, 6, 7, 8]. In contrast, little information is available on the effects of SDPP on growth performance when fed to broilers [9, 10, 11]. Recently, Campbell et al. [11, 12] showed that spray-dried serum proteins [13], delivered through the water, improved growth perfor-

To whom correspondence should be addressed: [email protected].

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*Department of Animal Science and †Department of Veterinary Diagnostic and Production Animal Medicine, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa 50011; and ‡APC, Inc., Ankeny, Iowa 50021

1

— 37.500 54.265 3.830 1.750 1.340 0.450 0.300 0.300 0.190 0.075

A

0.500 36.370 55.135 3.600 1.750 1.340 0.450 0.300 0.300 0.180 0.075

B

1.000 35.230 56.005 3.370 1.750 1.340 0.450 0.300 0.300 0.180 0.075

C 1.500 34.070 56.915 3.130 1.750 1.340 0.450 0.300 0.300 0.170 0.075

D

Starter diets (0–2 wk of age

2.000 32.930 57.785 2.900 1.750 1.340 0.450 0.300 0.300 0.170 0.075

E — 33.900 56.755 5.130 1.620 1.310 0.450 0.300 0.300 0.160 0.075

A 0.250 33.330 57.185 5.020 1.620 1.310 0.450 0.300 0.300 0.160 0.075

B 0.500 32.770 57.625 4.900 1.620 1.310 0.450 0.300 0.300 0.150 0.075

C 0.750 32.200 58.065 4.780 1.620 1.310 0.450 0.300 0.300 0.150 0.075

D

Grower diets (2–4 wk of age)

1.000 31.630 58.495 4.670 1.620 1.310 0.450 0.300 0.300 0.150 0.075

E — 28.300 62.975 4.890 1.450 1.160 0.450 0.300 0.300 0.100 0.075

A

C 0.250 27.730 63.405 4.780 1.450 1.160 0.450 0.300 0.300 0.100 0.075

B 0.125 28.000 63.210 4.830 1.450 1.160 0.450 0.300 0.300 0.100 0.075

0.375 27.430 63.650 4.710 1.450 1.160 0.450 0.300 0.300 0.100 0.075

D

Finisher diets (4–6 wk of age)

3

2

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0.500 27.170 63.835 4.660 1.450 1.160 0.450 0.300 0.300 0.100 0.075

E

Bovine origin [16]. Provided per kilogram of diet: manganese, 70 mg; zinc, 90 mg; iron (ferrous sulfate), 60 mg; copper, 12 mg; selenium (sodium selenite), 0.15 mg; sodium chloride, 2.5 g. Provided per kilogram of diet: vitamin A (retinyl acetate), 8,065 IU; cholecalciferol, 1,580 IU; vitamin E (DL-α-tocopheryl acetate), 15 IU; vitamin B12, 16 ␮g; vitamin K (menadione sodium bisulfite), 4 mg; riboflavin, 7.8 mg; pantothenic acid, 12.8 mg; niacin, 75 mg; choline, 509 mg; folic acid, 1.62 mg; biotin, 270 ␮g. d Provided 90 g of Monensin/907 kg of diet.

1

Spray-dried plasma protein Soybean meal, 48% Corn Animal-vegetable fat Dicalcium phosphate Limestone Salt, iodized Trace mineral premix2 Vitamin premix3 DL-Methionine Monensin sodium4

Ingredient

TABLE 1. Diet compositions (%)

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22.5 3050 1.01 0.46 0.89 0.21 0.32 229

0.90 0.52 1.25 0.86 0.31 1.50 0.61 1.95 0.94 2.03 1.97 1.05

0.90 0.54 1.25 0.86 0.31 1.51 0.60 1.95 0.95 2.08 1.98 1.05

B

22.5 3050 1.01 0.45 0.91 0.20 0.31 230

A

0.90 0.52 1.26 0.87 0.31 1.48 0.61 1.95 0.94 1.99 1.97 1.06

22.4 3050 1.00 0.47 0.87 0.23 0.33 229

C

0.90 0.51 1.26 0.87 0.31 1.47 0.61 1.96 0.93 1.94 1.97 1.06

22.3 3050 1.00 0.47 0.85 0.24 0.33 229

D

0.90 0.51 1.26 0.88 0.31 1.46 0.61 1.96 0.92 1.90 1.96 1.06

22.2 3050 1.00 0.48 0.83 0.26 0.34 228

E

0.83 0.49 1.15 0.80 0.28 1.40 0.56 1.84 0.88 1.93 1.84 0.98

21.0 3150 0.96 0.42 0.84 0.20 0.31 213

A

0.83 0.48 1.15 0.80 0.28 1.39 0.56 1.84 0.88 1.91 1.84 0.98

21.0 3150 0.96 0.43 0.83 0.20 0.31 213

B

0.83 0.47 1.15 0.80 0.28 1.38 0.56 1.84 0.88 1.89 1.84 0.98

20.9 3150 0.96 0.43 0.83 0.21 0.32 213

C

0.83 0.47 1.16 0.81 0.28 1.38 0.56 1.84 0.87 1.87 1.84 0.98

20.9 3150 0.96 0.43 0.82 0.22 0.32 213

D

Grower diets (2–4 wk of age)

0.83 0.47 1.16 0.81 0.28 1.37 0.56 1.84 0.87 1.84 1.83 0.99

20.9 3150 0.95 0.44 0.81 0.23 0.32 213

E

0.72 0.40 1.00 0.71 0.25 1.22 0.51 1.69 0.78 1.72 1.64 0.88

18.9 3200 0.85 0.38 0.75 0.20 0.31 190

A

C 18.8 3200 0.85 0.39 0.74 0.20 0.31 190 0.72 0.40 1.00 0.71 0.25 1.22 0.51 1.69 0.78 1.70 1.64 0.88

B 18.8 3200 0.85 0.39 0.75 0.20 0.31 190 0.72 0.40 1.00 0.71 0.25 1.22 0.51 1.69 0.78 1.71 1.64 0.88

0.72 0.40 1.00 0.72 0.25 1.21 0.51 1.69 0.78 1.69 1.64 0.88

18.8 3200 0.85 0.39 0.74 0.21 0.32 190

D

Finisher diets (4–6 wk of age)

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0.72 0.40 1.00 0.72 0.25 1.21 0.51 1.69 0.77 1.68 1.64 0.88

18.8 3200 0.85 0.39 0.73 0.21 0.32 190

E

Diets A, B, C, D, and E contained 0.0, 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, and 2.0% bovine spray-dried plasma protein, respectively, during the starter phase (wk 1 and 2); 0.00, 0.25, 0.50, 0.75, and 1.00% bovine spray-dried plasma protein, respectively, during the grower phase (wk 3 and 4); and 0.0, 0.125, 0.25, 0.375, and 0.50% bovine spray-dried plasma protein, respectively, during the finisher phase (wk 5 and 6).

1

Crude protein (%) MEn, (kcal/kg) Calcium (%) Phosphorus, nonphytate (%) Potassium (%) Sodium (%) Chloride (%) Dietary electrolyte balance, K+Na–Cl (mEq) Methionine + cystine (%) Methionine (%) Lysine (%) Threonine (%) Tryptophan (%) Arginine (%) Histidine (%) Leucine (%) Isoleucine (%) Glycine + serine (%) Phenylalanine + tyrosine (%) Valine (%)

Item

Starter diets (0–2 wk of age)

TABLE 2. Calculated nutritional composition of the treatment diets1

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BREGENDAHL ET AL.: SPRAY-DRIED PLASMA PROTEIN TABLE 3. Growth performance of broilers fed bovine spray-dried plasma protein (experiment 1) Growth phase and dietary treatment1

0.410 0.395 0.406 0.408 0.401 0.007 NS

0.511 0.501 0.514 0.514 0.501 0.007 NS

1.249 1.272 1.267 1.258 1.253 0.015 NS

1.179 1.171 1.194 1.173 1.163 0.011 NS

1.666 1.644 1.698 1.691 1.635 0.014 Q, C

1.403 1.403 1.429 1.442 1.407 0.009 Q, C

1.359 1.362 1.371 1.362 1.358 0.022 NS

2.458 2.450 2.451 2.444 2.467 0.027 NS

1.681 1.672 1.660 1.667 1.668 0.018 NS

2.957 2.928 2.971 2.943 2.922 0.027 NS

4.621 4.554 4.641 4.631 4.562 0.036 NS

1.526 1.529 1.548 1.537 1.524 0.009 NS

1

Diets A, B, C, D, and E contained 0.0, 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, and 2.0% bovine spray-dried plasma protein, respectively, during the starter phase (wk 1 and 2); 0.00, 0.25, 0.50, 0.75, and 1.00% bovine spray-dried plasma protein, respectively, during the grower phase (wk 3 and 4); and 0.0, 0.125, 0.25, 0.375, and 0.50% bovine spray-dried plasma protein, respectively, during the finisher phase (wk 5 and 6). 2 NS at P > 0.05; Q = quadratic effect (P < 0.05); C = cubic effect (P < 0.05).

mance of broilers and turkeys raised in an unsanitary environment. Administering SDPP through automatic drinking systems is beneficial for short-term administration as well as during stress periods or disease outbreaks when feed consumption may be low, but has the disadvantage of requiring daily cleaning of the drinker system to avoid bacterial buildup. Including SDPP in the diet offers the convenience of incorporating

functional proteins into the broiler management program on a more long-term basis. The objectives of this study were to determine the growthperformance and carcass-quality responses of growing broiler chickens to graded levels of dietary bovine SDPP when raised in an unsanitary environment simulating common production practices. All procedures were approved by the Iowa State University Committee on Animal Care.

MATERIALS AND METHODS In experiment 1, the unsanitary environment was created by mixing 50% clean pine shavings with 50% soiled litter from an on-site turkey barn. The litter was reused in experiment 2, which was performed 2 wk after the conclusion of experiment 1. During the 2-wk down period, the building remained heated (minimum 15°C), while the litter was blended with an additional 25% soiled turkey litter and kept moist to facilitate bacterial growth. In each experiment, 480 unvaccinated 1-dold male broiler chicks (Ross × Ross 308) were purchased from a commercial hatchery [14] and transported to the Iowa State University Poultry Science Center outside Ames, IA. Upon arrival, the chicks were wing banded and randomly allotted to 40 floor pens [15], after which each pen was assigned 1 of the 5 dietary treatments (Tables 1 and 2) according to a randomized complete block design. Spray-dried plasma protein [16] of bovine origin replaced soybean meal in the control diet on a lysine basis. When necessary, contents of DL-methionine and fat were adjusted to maintain equal dietary contents of energy and methionine + cysteine. All diets were formulated to meet or exceed the National Research Council’s [17] nutrient recommendations for broiler chickens using the feed-ingredient nutrient profiles reported by the National Research Council [17]. The nutrient profile reported by the National Research Council [18] and an estimated nitrogen-corrected metabolizable energy content of 3500 kcal/kg were used for SDPP. The diets were pelleted after which portions of the animal–vegetable blend and all of the SDPP were added; the starter diet was crumbled following pelleting. Feed consumption was determined weekly and broilers were weighed every 7 d as pen

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Starter A B C D E Standard error Significance2 Grower A B C D E Standard erorr Significance2 Finisher A B C D E Standard error Significance2 Overall A B C D E Standard error Significance2

Feed Body Feed conversion weight consumption (kg of feed/kg gain (kg) (kg) of gain)

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TABLE 4. Mortality and flock uniformity after 6 wk of feeding bovine spray-dried plasma protein. Experiment 1

Dietary treatment1

Overall mortality (%)

Live weight coefficient of variation (%)

Broilers within ± 10% of the pen mean (%)

2.1 7.3 4.2 3.1 6.3 —3 NS3

9.0 8.7 8.7 8.4 8.1 0.7 NS

77.6 77.5 81.4 77.7 81.9 4.5 NS

Overall mortality (%)

Live weight coefficient of variation (%)

Broilers within ± 10% of the pen mean (%)

10.4 13.5 8.3 12.5 15.6 —3 NS3

12.6 10.8 8.4 8.7 11.5 1.1 Q

56.6 75.7 78.9 80.7 69.2 5.5 Q

1

Diets A, B, C, D, and E contained 0.0, 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, and 2.0% bovine spray-dried plasma protein, respectively, during the starter phase (wk 1 and 2); 0.00, 0.25, 0.50, 0.75, and 1.00% bovine spray-dried plasma protein, respectively, during the grower phase (wk 3 and 4); and 0.0, 0.125, 0.25, 0.375, and 0.50% bovine spray-dried plasma protein, respectively, during the finisher phase (wk 5 and 6). 2 NS at P > 0.05; Q = quadratic effect (P < 0.05). 3 Mortality percentages were transformed to arcsine square root percentages before statistical analysis.

weights until d 41 of age, when individual body weights were recorded in the late afternoon. In the morning of d 42 posthatching, after an overnight fast, broilers were transported to the Iowa State University Meat Laboratory for slaughter and chilling according to USDA guidelines [19]. Chilled carcass weights were recorded for all broilers, and carcasses were subsequently cut into breast, leg, wings (including wing tips), and remainder of carcass (including the neck). The weights of all parts were recorded; for breast, the skin + bones and meat were weighed separately. All processing and carcass measurements were performed in pen order, thereby randomizing the order in which broilers on different treatments were processed. In experiment 1, the cutup procedure, performed on only 5 carcasses per pen, resulted in high person-to-person variability and the data were deemed unreliable and not included in this report. The cut-up procedures were consequently changed for experiment 2, such that measurements (still performed in pen order) were made on all carcasses and specific cuts were assigned to specific persons in an attempt to minimize person-to-person variability. Data were subjected to analysis of variance procedures appropriate for a randomized complete block design with the pen locations within the barn as blocking criterion. Mortality percentages were transformed to arcsine square root percentages before statistical analysis to ensure a normal distribution [20]. Individual pens served as ex-

perimental units and effects of bovine SDPP were evaluated using linear, quadratic, and cubic contrasts with P < 0.05 considered significant. Results are expressed as means of 8 pens per dietary treatment ± pooled standard error.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION In experiment 1, dietary bovine SDPP did not (P > 0.05) affect growth performance in the starter phase, but increased (P < 0.05) feed consumption in the grower phase, leading to a significantly poorer feed conversion in this phase (Table 3). However, neither the rate of body weight gain nor feed conversion was affected by SDPP in the finisher or overall growth phases (P > 0.05), which disagreed with observations from previous reports of broilers and turkeys fed bovine SDPP [9, 11, 12, 21]. The final body weight (3.14 ± 0.03 kg), mortality, and flock uniformity (Table 4) were not affected (P > 0.05) by the dietary treatments in experiment 1. The low mortality of the control-fed birds (diet A) coupled with a growth performance surpassing that expected from the Ross-308 performance objectives [22] suggested that the environment in experiment 1 was not sufficiently unsanitary to elicit clear SDPP responses. Indeed, a lack of growth performance responses to dietary SDPP is observed in broilers and pigs when the controlfed animals are performing above expectations [7, 11]. Experiment 1 was therefore repeated, with the anticipation that reusing the soiled litter

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A B C D E Standard error Significance2

Experiment 2

BREGENDAHL ET AL.: SPRAY-DRIED PLASMA PROTEIN TABLE 5. Growth performance of broilers fed bovine spray-dried plasma protein (experiment 2) Growth phase and dietary treatment1

Feed consumption (kg)

Feed conversion (kg of feed/kg of gain)

0.389 0.396 0.379 0.396 0.388 0.004 NS

0.534 0.543 0.543 0.540 0.509 0.010 Q

1.375 1.374 1.434 1.366 1.314 0.026 Q

1.053 1.095 1.075 1.121 1.071 0.015 Q

1.579 1.600 1.588 1.625 1.553 0.018 NS

1.500 1.462 1.478 1.449 1.450 0.010 L

1.325 1.340 1.350 1.352 1.309 0.020 NS

2.390 2.465 2.450 2.476 2.405 0.029 Q

1.806 1.840 1.817 1.832 1.841 0.022 NS

2.767 2.831 2.803 2.869 2.767 0.028 Q

4.424 4.509 4.544 4.574 4.357 0.050 Q

1.599 1.594 1.622 1.595 1.575 0.014 NS

1

Diets A, B, C, D, and E contained 0.0, 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, and 2.0% bovine spray-dried plasma protein, respectively, during the starter phase (wk 1 and 2); 0.00, 0.25, 0.50, 0.75, and 1.00% bovine spray-dried plasma protein, respectively, during the grower phase (wk 3 and 4); and 0.0, 0.125, 0.25, 0.375, and 0.50% bovine spray-dried plasma protein, respectively, during the finisher phase (wk 5 and 6). 2 NS at P > 0.05; L = linear effect (P < 0.05); Q = quadratic effect (P < 0.05).

would result in an environment that was more unsanitary than that achieved in experiment 1. The rate of body weight gain of the controlfed broilers (diet A) from 0 to 6 wk of age observed in experiment 2 (67.5 ± 0.7 g/d) was lower than that observed in experiment 1 (72.1 ± 0.7 g/d) and the body weights less uniform at slaughter (57% of the control-fed broilers were within 10% of the mean pen body weight in

experiment 2 compared with 78% of broilers in experiment 1; Table 4). In addition, the mortality of control-fed broilers in experiment 2 was appreciably higher than that observed in experiment 1 (Table 4). These observations suggest that the reuse of the litter and the lack of cleaning and disinfection of the barn between the experiments resulted in a relatively more unsanitary environment in experiment 2 in which the bovine SDPP would exert its effects. In the unsanitary environment of experiment 2, dietary bovine SDPP increased feed consumption in all growth phases except the grower phase, and increased the body weights in both the grower and overall phases (P < 0.05; Table 5). The higher rate of body weight gain of SDPPfed broilers was accompanied by an improved feed utilization in the starter and grower phases (P < 0.05), an effect also observed by Campbell et al. [11] when broilers were raised in an unsanitary environment. SDPP contains immunoglobulins that enhance the immune system and, at least in part, explains the improved growth performance of antigen-exposed pigs [23]. Because broilers have immature immune systems immediately following hatch, antibodies in the bovine SDPP were expected to compensate for the immature status of the gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT) and protect against pathogens that may suppress feed consumption and growth rate during this period [24, 25, 26]. However, bovine SDPP did not significantly improve growth performance in the first 2 wk of age, but did improve the overall rate of body weight gain and feed consumption in experiment 2. Yi et al. [9] reported that SDPP improved rate of body weight gain at 3 and 7 d of age and Campbell et al. [11] showed that SDPP improved rate of body weight gain, feed consumption rate, and feed conversion of broilers up to 3 wk of age. Mortality was not affected by the dietary treatments (P > 0.05; Table 4), which is in agreement with observations of pigs and broilers raised in immune-challenging environments and fed porcine SDPP or bovine spray-dried serum proteins, respectively [7, 11]. However, bovine SDPP administered through the water to turkeys protected against mortality caused by a challenge with Pasteurella multocida, the causative agent of fowl cholera [21]. In experiment 2 of the present study, broilers under 2 wk of age,

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Starter A B C D E Standard error Significance2 Grower A B C D E Standard error Significance2 Finisher A B C D E Standard error Significance2 Overall A B C D E Standard error Significance2

Body weight gain (kg)

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TABLE 6. Carcass composition1 after 6 wk of feeding bovine spray-dried plasma protein (experiment 2)

Dietary treatment2

Live weight at slaughter (kg)

Carcass weight (kg)

Dressing percentage

Leg

Wing

Remainder of carcass

2.80 2.87 2.84 2.90 2.80 0.03 Q

2.01 2.04 2.03 2.07 1.99 0.02 Q

71.4 71.2 71.4 71.2 71.1 0.3 NS

29.6 29.6 29.1 29.3 29.5 0.2 NS

10.5 10.6 10.5 10.5 10.2 0.1 L

24.8 24.8 24.6 24.5 24.7 0.2 NS

1

Skin-on, bone-in. Diets A, B, C, D, and E contained 0.0, 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, and 2.0% bovine spray-dried plasma protein, respectively, during the starter phase (wk1 and 2); 0.00, 0.25, 0.50, 0.75, and 1.00% bovine spray-dried plasma protein, respectively, during the grower phase (wk 3 and 4); and 0.0, 0.125, 0.25, 0.375, and 0.50% bovine spray-dried plasma protein, respectively, during the finisher phase (wk 5 and 6). 3 NS at P > 0.05; L = linear effect (P < 0.05); Q = quadratic effect (P < 0.05). 2

regardless of diet, generally died from causes relating to E. coli and Streptococcus infections, whereas broilers older than 2 wk of age died from either ascites syndrome or pulmonary hemorrhage. The high incidence of mortality from ascites syndrome across all dietary treatments in experiment 2 was likely instigated by the lighting program [27], which was intentionally lengthened in an attempt to increase feed consumption and growth rate. The flock uniformity (measured as coefficients of variation and proportion of birds within 10% of the mean body weight) improved quadratically (P < 0.05) with increasing dietary bovine SDPP (Table 4). The broilers fed bovine SDPP were heavier (P < 0.05) than control-fed broilers at slaughter in experiment 2 and, because SDPP did not affect dressing percentage (P > 0.10), the SDPPfed birds also had a higher carcass weights (Table 6). Bovine SDPP increased (P < 0.05) breastmeat yield expressed as a percentage of carcass weight cubically (Figure 1). No significant effects on the cut-up yields of legs or the remainder of the carcass were observed; however, the wings made up a slightly smaller, linearly decreasing (P < 0.05), percentage of the carcass with increasing dietary bovine SDPP (Table 6). Specific cuts were made by the same person and carcasses were processed in pen order, so it is unlikely that the larger breast-meat yield and corresponding smaller wing weights were caused by the processing procedure. Both nutrition and health status affect muscle development

and breast-meat yield [28, 29]. Furthermore, the amount of feed consumed immediately posthatching affects body weight and breast-muscle yield at 41 d of age [29]. In the present experiment, bovine SDPP tended to increase feed consumption quadratically during the first week after hatch (P = 0.08; data not shown) and increased feed consumption quadratically (P < 0.05) in the starter phase. It is possible that the effects of SDPP on feed consumption was manifested already at 3 d of age as indicated by Yi et al. [9], in which case the increase in feed consumption could account for the improvement in breast-meat yield observed in experiment 2. The results from this study show that bovine SDPP had a positive effect on growth performance, breast-meat yield, and flock uniformity of broilers raised in the relatively unsanitary environment of experiment 2. The quadratic response to dietary bovine SDPP indicated that the above-mentioned effects were realized at intermediate inclusion levels. Reasons for the decrease in growth performance and carcass characteristics of birds fed diet E with up to 2% SDPP is unclear. Yi et al. [9] reported no adverse effects of feeding diets containing up to 9% SDPP to broilers, with the highest body weight gain in broilers fed diets containing 3% SDPP. In experiment 2 of the current study, broilers on diet E had higher mortality rates, a higher live weight coefficient of variation, fewer broilers with a body weight within 10% of the pen mean, lower rate of body weight gain, less feed con-

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A B C D E Standard error Significance3

Carcass composition (% of carcass weight)

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sumption, and less carcass weight than chickens fed diets B, C, and D, receiving lower levels of bovine SDPP in the feed. Crude-protein analysis of the diets did not reveal major differences among diets (data not shown) that may otherwise have explained the adverse effects. The diets were not adjusted for the relatively high sodium content of bovine SDPP (3.0%), which in the starter phase increased the calculated dietary sodium content to as much as 0.26% (Table 2). Although the dietary sodium (or salt) content may influence feed intake, Murakami et al. [30] did not find any adverse effects on growth performance or breast-meat yield of broilers fed

diets containing up to 0.30% sodium. The palatability of bovine SDPP has not been investigated for chickens, but porcine SDPP is reported to be highly palatable to weanling pigs [31]. The performance of broilers on diet E was similar to that of the control broilers, suggesting a low consumption of SDPP by broilers fed diet E. Because the SDPP was sprayed on the diets after pelleting, it cannot be ruled out that there was some separation of the SDPP from the pellets during transport and storage of the feed. If so, the lack of effect of SDPP in diet E may be because of a lower intake of SDPP due to the separation from the pellets.

CONCLUSIONS AND APPLICATIONS 1. Dietary bovine SDPP did not improve growth performance or breast-meat yield of broilers in experiment 1. 2. Dietary bovine SDPP, fed at intermediate levels throughout the growth period, improved growth performance, breast-meat yield, and flock uniformity of broilers in experiment 2. 3. Differences in the degree of sanitation and, therefore, pathogen exposure between experiments 1 and 2 may explain the effects of dietary bovine SDPP in experiment 2. 4. Further research is needed to determine the optimal inclusion level of bovine SDPP, to determine if SDPP should be fed throughout the growth period or in early growth phases only, and to determine how dietary SDPP improves breast-meat yield.

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FIGURE 1. Breast-meat yield after 6 wk of feeding bovine spray-dried plasma protein (experiment 2). Values are means ± standard error (n = 8). Diets A, B, C, D, and E contained 0.0, 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, and 2.0% bovine spray-dried plasma protein, respectively, during the starter phase (wk 1 and 2); 0.00, 0.25, 0.50, 0.75, and 1.00% bovine spray-dried plasma protein, respectively, during the grower phase (wk 3 and 4); and 0.0, 0.125, 0.25, 0.375, and 0.50% bovine spray-dried plasma protein, respectively, during the finisher phase (wk 5 and 6).

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REFERENCES AND NOTES 1. Hayes, J. R., L. E. Carr, E. T. Mallinson, L. W. Douglas, and S. W. Joseph. 2000. Characterization of the contribution of water activity and moisture content to the population distribution of Salmonella spp. in commercial poultry houses. Poult. Sci. 79:1557–1561. 2. Pope, M. J., and T. E. Cherry. 2000. An evaluation of the presence of pathogens on broilers raised on poultry litter treatmenttreated litter. Poult. Sci. 79:1351–1355. 3. Terzich, M., M. J. Pope, T. E. Cherry, and J. Hollinger. 2000. Survey of pathogens in poultry litter in the United States. J. Appl. Poult. Res. 9:287–291.

5. Hansen, J. A., J. L. Nelssen, R. D. Goodband, and T. L. Weeden. 1993. Evaluation of animal protein supplements in diets of early-weaned pigs. J. Anim. Sci. 71:1853–1862. 6. Kats, L. J., J. L. Nelssen, M. D. Tokach, R. D. Goodband, J. A. Hansen, and J. L. Laurin. 1994. The effect of spray-dried porcine plasma on growth performance in the early-weaned pig. J. Anim. Sci. 72:2075–2081. 7. Coffey, R. D., and G. L. Cromwell. 1995. The impact of environment and antimicrobial agents on the growth response of early-weaned pigs to spray-dried porcine plasma. J. Anim. Sci. 73:2532–2539. 8. Torrallardona, D., M. R. Conde, I. Badiola, J. Polo, and J. Brufau. 2003. Effect of fishmeal replacement with spray-dried animal plasma and colistin on intestinal structure, intestinal microbiology, and performance of weanling pigs challenged with Escherichia coli K99. J. Anim. Sci. 81:1220–1226. 9. Yi, G. F., G. L. Allee, J. W. Frank, J. D. Spencer, and K. J. Touchette. 2001. Impact of glutamine, menhaden fishmeal and spraydried plasma on the growth performance and intestinal morphology of broilers. Poult. Sci. 80(Suppl. 1):201. (Abstr.) 10. Pierce, J. L., G. L. Cromwell, and M. D. Lindemann. 1996. Assessment of spray-dried plasma protein from three species on performance of chicks. Poult. Sci. 75(Suppl. 1):36. (Abstr.) 11. Campbell, J. M., J. D. Quigley, III, L. E. Russell, and M. T. Kidd. 2003. Effect of spray-dried bovine serum on intake, health, and growth of broilers housed in different environments. J. Anim. Sci. 81:2776–2782. 12. Campbell, J. M., J. D. Quigley, III, and L. E. Russell. 2004. Impact of spray-dried bovine serum and environment on turkey performance. Poult. Sci. 83:1683–1687. 13. Serum was produced by removing fibrin from plasma.

19. The broilers were stunned with an electric knife and the jugular veins (both sides of the neck) severed. The broilers were then bled for 1 min, scalded at 57°C for 1.5 min, and defeathered in a rotary picker. The feet, viscera, and head were removed manually and discarded. After rinsing, the carcasses were chilled in ice water for 4 h, drained, and stored in a cold room overnight before evaluation of carcass weights and cut-up yields in a cold room. 20. Zar, J. H. 1999. Biostatistical Analysis. 4th ed. Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ. 21. Campbell, J. M., J. D. Quigley, III, L. E. Russell, and L. D. Koehnk. 2004. Efficacy of spray-dried bovine serum on health and performance of turkeys challenged with Pasteurella multocida. J. Appl. Poult. Res. 13:388–393. 22. 2003 Ross × Ross 308 North American broiler performance objectives. Aviagen, Huntsville, AL. 23. Gatnau, R., C. Cain, and D. Zimmerman. 1995. Mode of action of spray-dried porcine plasma in weanling pigs. J. Anim. Sci. 73(Suppl. 1):82. (Abstr.) 24. Schat, K. A., and T. J. Myers. 1991. Avian intestinal immunity. Crit. Rev. Poult. Biol. 3:19–34. 25. Dibner, J. J., C. D. Knight, M. L. Kitchell, C. A. Atwell, A. C. Downs, and F. J. Ivey. 1998. Early feeding and development of the immune system in neonatal poultry. J. Appl. Poult. Res. 7:425–436. 26. Pe´rez-Bosque, A., C. Pelegrı´, M. Vicario, M. Castell, L. Russell, J. M. Campbell, J. D. Quigley, III, J. Polo, C. Amat, and M. Moreto´. 2004. Dietary plasma protein affects the immune response of weaned rats challenged with S. aureus superantigen Br. J. Nutr. 134:2667–2672. 27. In experiment 1, light was provided for 23 h/d from d 1 to 6 posthatching, 18 h/d from d 7 to 14 posthatching, and 23 h/d from d 15 to 42 posthatching. Light was provided for 23 h/d throughout experiment 2. 28. Klasing, K. C. 1998. Nutritional modulation of resistance to infectious diseases. Poult. Sci. 77:1119–1125. 29. Halevy, O., A. Geyra, M. Barak, Z. Uni, and D. Sklan. 2000. Early posthatch starvation decreases satellite cell proliferation and skeletal muscle growth in chicks. J. Nutr. 130:858–864. 30. Murakami, A. E., E. A. Saleh, J. A. England, D. A. Dickey, S. E. Watkins, and P. W. Waldroup. 1997. Effect of level and source of sodium on performance of male broilers to 56 days. J. Appl. Poult. Res. 6:128–136. 31. Ermer, P. M., P. S. Miller, and A. J. Lewis. 1994. Diet preference and meal patterns of weanling pigs offered diets containing either spray-dried porcine plasma or dried skim milk. J. Anim. Sci. 72:1548–1554.

14. Welp Hatchery, Bancroft, IA. 15. The pens measured 1.2 × 1.2 m and were equipped with 1 round plastic self-feeder, 6 water nipples, and a heat lamp. Egg flats with feed were provided for the first 5 d of the experiment. Each pen contained 12 chicks at the start of each experiment. 16. AP920, APC, Inc., Ankeny, IA. 17. National Research Council. 1994. Nutrient Requirements of Poultry. 9th rev. ed. Natl. Acad. Sci., Washington, DC.

Acknowledgments This work was supported in part by APC, Inc., Ankeny, IA, and in part by the Iowa Agriculture and Home Economics Experiment Station, Iowa State University, Ames, IA. Our appreciation goes to P. Dixon, Department of Statistics, Iowa State University, for statistical advice and to the staff at the Iowa State University Poultry Science Center for daily care of the chickens and help with the processing.

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4. de Rodas, B. A., K. S. Sohn, C. V. Maxwell, and L. J. Spicer. 1995. Plasma protein for pigs weaned at 19 to 24 days of age: Effect on performance and plasma insulin-like growth factor I, growth hormone, insulin, and glucose concentrations. J. Anim. Sci. 73:3657–3665.

18. National Research Council. 1998. Nutrient Requirements of Swine. 10th ed. Natl. Acad. Sci., Washington, DC.