Eugeni Roura

Feather pecking is synonymous with economic and major welfare problems in the poultry industry and is positively associated with feather ingestion. In a choice-feeding experiment, laying hens showed a stronger preference for unwashed compared to washed feathers (McKeegan and Savory, 2001). The attraction toward unwashed feathers could be related to the preen oil produced by the uropygial glands lo ...

I. INTRODUCTIONThe ban on the use of AGPs together with good antibiotic stewardship practices by intensive livestock industries resulting in a decline of antimicrobial resistance globally (Salim et al., 2018). Probiotics have been widely studied partially as a replacement of AGPs. Some probiotics are able to improve production performance whilst improving gut health and decreasing the likelihood o ...

Xylo-oligosaccharides (XOS) are xylose-based oligomers, which have been described to affect the gut microflora, and gut function in chickens (Zhou et al., 2021). This, in turn, may have an impact on intestinal epithelial cell turnover, which accounts for a significant part of the energy of maintenance required by the gastrointestinal tract. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of dieta ...

Oregano essential oil (OEO) and carvacrol, the main compound of OEO, are considered as a reference for biological activities of essential oils (EO). OEO has positive effects on gut and immune system developments potentially related to antimicrobial and antioxidant activities in chickens (Brenes and Roura, 2010). Embryonic development accounts for one-third of the lifespan of modern broiler chicken ...

Plant-derived essential oils (EOs) contain functional phytochemical components that are used as feed additives to improve gut health and reduce the need for antibiotics. The injection of EOs into fertile eggs has the potential to influence the developing embryo including the gastrointestinal tract. This in turn may mitigate intestinal susceptibility and regulate gut microbial composition, resultin ...