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Applied and Environmental Microbiology, September 2004, p. 5208-5213, Vol. 70, No. 9
0099-2240/04/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/AEM.70.9.5208-5213.2004
Copyright © 2004, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Acidified Litter Benefits the Intestinal Flora Balance of Broiler Chickens

Margarita Novoa Garrido,1* Magne Skjervheim,2 Hanne Oppegaard,1,{dagger} and Henning Sørum1

Department of Food Safety and Infection Biology, Norwegian School of Veterinary Science, Oslo,1 Veterinary Institute Bergen, Bergen, Norway2

Received 5 November 2003/ Accepted 25 May 2004

The alterations in the balance of the normal intestinal bacterial flora of chickens exposed to acidified wood-derived litter were analyzed and compared to those of a control group exposed to nonacidified litter. A total of 1,728 broilers were divided into two groups, with six replicates in each. One group was exposed to dry wood-derived litter, and the other was exposed to dry wood-derived litter sprayed with a mixture of sodium lignosulfonate, formic acid, and propionic acid. At five different times, five chickens from each pen were killed and the intestinal contents from ileum and caeca were collected. The samples were diluted and plated onto selective media to identify coliforms, Lactobacillus spp., Clostridium perfringens, and Enterococcus spp. Covariance analysis of bacterial counts showed significantly lower counts for C. perfringens in the caeca and the ileum and for Enterococcus spp. and Lactobacillus spp. in the ileum in chickens exposed to the acidified litter. Lactobacillus spp. showed significantly higher counts in the caeca in chickens exposed to acidified litter. There was no difference between the two litters with regard to coliforms in the ileum and the caeca or to Enterococcus spp. in the caeca. The study shows that exposing the chickens to acidified litter lowers the intestinal bacterial number, especially in the ileum, without negative consequences for the chicken's health or performance. Of special interest are the lower counts of C. perfringens and Enterococcus spp. that might reduce the risk of developing clinical or subclinical necrotic enteritis and growth depression.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Food Hygiene and Infection Biology, Norwegian School of Veterinary Science, PB 8146 Dep., 0033 Oslo, Norway. Phone: (47) 22964500. Fax: (47) 22964818. E-mail: margarita.novoa.garrido{at}veths.no.

{dagger} Present address: TINE Research and Development, 0901 Oslo, Norway.

Applied and Environmental Microbiology, September 2004, p. 5208-5213, Vol. 70, No. 9
0099-2240/04/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/AEM.70.9.5208-5213.2004
Copyright © 2004, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



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