Physicochemical Assessment of Broiler Chickens Fed Diets Supplemented with a Mixture of Ginger, Garlic and Cinnamon

Some physicochemical changes in broiler chickens fed diets supplemented with a mixture of ginger, garlic and cinnamon was evaluated. During starter phase, 150 broiler chicks were divided into groups A and B of 75 birds each, and were randomly fed diets 1 and 2 respectively for 3 weeks. The average weekly weight gain by the chickens maintained on the mixed spices supplemented diet (235.15±15.55g) was significantly lower (p<0.05) compared with the weight gain by the control (274.26±20.23g) in the Starter phase. In the Finisher phase, group A was sub-divided into groups C and D while group B was subdivided into groups E and F and fed for additional 3 weeks. The average weekly weight gain by groups C (242.31±4.97g), D (282.46±15.04g), E (260.14±81.11g) and F (236.67±24.29g) did not vary significantly. The evaluated carcass characteristics and haematological indices when compared with the control did not vary significantly. The serum cholesterol levels (mg/dl) in groups D (101.40±4.13), E (106.60±4.59) and F (100.20±9.83) were significantly lower (p<0.05) in comparison with the level in group C (127.00±8.83). Groups E (46.96±8.62mg/dl) and F (47.44±6.35mg/dl) had significantly (p<0.05) lower LDL-C compared with the control (70.56±8.75mg/dl). Therefore, mixture of ginger, garlic and cinnamon may have no effects on the overall weight gain, carcass traits and haematological profiles but could decrease the risk of atherogenesis and CVD in broiler chickens. DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.4314/jasem.v24i5.12 Copyright: Copyright © 2020 Idoko et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License (CCL), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Dates: Received: 20 March 2020; Revised: 16 April 2020; Accepted: 27 April 2020

Meat plays an important role in the human diet. It is a good source of high-quality protein and serves as a vital source of beneficial fatty acids and a variety of micronutrients for optimal health (Laura, 2015). Fat is the richest dietary source of energy in meat and varies depending on the type of the meat (Higgs, 2019) among others. The type of fat, as well as the total fat content of meat is important to consider in terms of CVD, as not all fats are equal. Different fatty acids have different effects on blood cholesterol and risk of heart disease, some beneficial and some adverse. The fat content of cooked chicken varies depending on the bird's diet and other factors such as breed, portion and on whether it is cooked with the skin on or off (Farrell, 2013). Unlike most other meats, chicken meat can easily be enriched with several other important nutrients. For instance, Yu et al. (2008) showed that by adding 0.24mg of selenium (as organic selenium) per kilogram of feed, the selenium content of breast meat increased from 8.6 μg to 41 μg/100g, which is more than 65 percent of the RDI thereby preventing Keshan's disease, a heart ailment in the young and cognitive decline in adults which are caused by selenium deficiency. Also some bioactive plant substances in animal nutrition have been reported to have beneficial effects which include the stimulation of appetite and feed intake, the improvement of endogenous digestive enzyme secretion, activation of immune responses and antibacterial, antiviral and antioxidant actions (Dorman and Deans, 2000;Hosseini-Vashan et al., 2012). Idoko et al. (2019) reports that combination of dried and pulverized garlic, ginger and pomegranate in ratio of 2:2:1 respectively could suppress fat accumulation in broiler chickens, without affecting other carcass traits, lipid and red blood cell indices. Herbs and spices have been used since ancient times, not only as antioxidants and flavoring agents, but also for their antimicrobial activity against degradation induced by food borne pathogens and food spoilage bacteria  a . Furthermore, plants are rich in different classes of antimicrobial substances acting as defence systems which offer protection against biotic (living) and abiotic (non-living) stresses  b . This research was conducted to study the influence of a mixture of ginger, garlic and cinnamon on the physicochemical properties of broiler meat. Feed formulation: The spices; cinnamon, garlic and ginger were thoroughly mixed in ratio of 4:2:1 respectively. The mixed spices and Starter were mixed in a ratio of 2:98 receptively to formulate 2% mixedspices supplemented Starter. Also, 2% mixed-spices supplemented Finisher was formulated using the same method.

IDOKO
The following feeds were then formulated for the experiment; 1. 0% mixed-spices supplemented Starter 2. 2% mixed-spices supplemented Starter 3. 0% mixed-spices supplemented Finisher 4. 2% mixed-spices supplemented Finisher Experimental design and animal management: Starter phase: In this phase of the experiment, the 150 chicks were divided into groups A and B of 75 birds each and randomly assigned to diets 1 and 2 respectively.
Finisher phase: In the second (Finisher) phase of the experiment, group A in the first phase was sub-divided into groups C and D while group B in the first phase was subdivided into groups E and F as follows; Group C was maintained on 0% mixed spicessupplemented Starter and then 0% mixed-spicessupplemented Finisher feeds (Control). Group D was maintained on 0% mixed spicessupplemented Starter and then 2% mixed spicessupplemented Finisher feeds. Group E was maintained on 2% mixed spicessupplemented Starter and then 2% mixed spicessupplemented Finisher feeds. Group F was maintained on 2% mixed spicessupplemented Starter and 0% mixed spicessupplemented Finisher feeds.
The broilers were kept in accordance with the method of Idoko et al. (2019). In this method, the birds were put in a warm (35°C-38°C), appropriately ventilated and disinfected environment. After seven days of acclimatization to the experimental environment, the birds were maintained ad libitum on their respective experimental Starter feeds for three (3) weeks and Finisher feeds for another three (3) weeks. The birds received gumboro disease vaccines on the 10 th and 24 th days. Newcastle disease vaccine (Lasota strain) was administered on the 17 th and 31 st days.

Determination of feed intake and growth pattern:
The quantity of feed left over was subtracted from the quantity of feed served on daily basis to determine the daily feed consumed. The average weekly feed consumptions were calculated from the daily consumptions. The change in weight was estimated by weighing the chicks at the commencement of the experiment and thereafter on weekly basis (Idoko et al., 2016).
Carcass performance: At the end of the feeding trial, 5 birds with the least standard deviation among them were selected from each group and starved for 12 hours, weighed after the fasting and sacrificed by severing the jugular vein. Blood was collected in sample tubes (EDTA-treated and untreated). The sacrificed birds were scalded and plucked. They were cut open and eviscerated. The dressing, carcass, giblets and fat pad percentages as well as percentage organ to body weight were then computed following the methods adopted by Isa (2018) as follows: Dressing % = Carcass weight/live weight × 100 Giblets % = (Liver+Gizzard+Heart) weight/Live weight ×100 Abdominal fat pad % = (Fat pad weight/ Live weight) ×100 %Liver = liver weight/carcass weight x 100 %Heart = Heart weight/carcass weight x 100 %Gizzard = Gizzard weight/carcass weight x 100 Determination of lipid and haematological profile: Serum was processed from the blood in the plain tubes following the method of Akanji and Ngaha (1989). Serum lipid (Total cholesterol(TC), Triglyceride and HDL-C) concentrations were determined using lipid profile enzyme assay kits from Randox Laboratories Ltd. LDL-C was computed from the formula TC-(TG/5 +HDL) (Friedewald et al., 1972) while VLDL was computed from; VLDL-C=Total triglycerides divided by 5 (Tietz, 1976). Atherogenic index and coronary risk index were computed from the determined lipid profiles (Kazemi et al., 2018); Atherogenic Index (AI) = LDL-C/HDL-C Coronary risk index (CRI) = (TC/HDL-C). The haematological parameters were determined in blood collected into EDTA-treated tubes at Federal Medical Centre, Katsina using automated haematology Analyser.  Figure 1 shows the result of the growth pattern of broiler birds fed diets supplemented with a mixture of ginger, garlic and cinnamon during the Starter phase. The weight of the birds fed diet 2 remained significantly lower (p<0.05) than that fed diet1 throughout the starter phase. Similarly, the average weekly weight gain in birds maintained on diet 2 differed significantly (P<0.05) when compared with average weekly weight gain in birds maintained on diet 1 (Table 1). There were no significant variations (p>0.05) in the weight gain by the experimental birds during the finisher phase (Table 2). However, the chickens maintained on diets 2 and 4 (Group E) had a more steady linear increase in weight ( Figure 2). The results of the evaluated carcass characteristics show that mixture of the spices had no significant (p>0.05) effects on them (Table 3). The lower weight gain by the group maintained on diet 2 during the starter phase could be due to the thermogenic and metabolicincreasing effects of the added spices. Ajoene, an organo-sulfur compound found in garlic is reported not only to exert inhibitory effect on adipogenesis, but to also induce apoptosis (Ambati et al., 2009). Zingibaine, a cysteine protease enzyme found in ginger degrades and mobilizes storage proteins and can also respond to abiotic and biotic stresses, such as heat shock, cold temperatures, and dehydration (Ha et al., 2012). Cinnamon has been shown to reduce some of the bad effects of eating high-fat foods helping in an overall weight loss plan. The anti-inflammatory and antibacterial properties of cinnamon can bring about loss of weight by promoting an overall healthy body that would process food better (Diana, 2016). Previously, Idoko et al. (2019) reported similar finding with combination of dried and pulverized garlic, ginger and pomegranate in ratio of 2:2:1 respectively. During the finisher phase, the birds might have acclimatized to the spices resulting in improved weight gain. This could explain why birds fed the supplemented diets during both the starter and finisher phases (Group E) and group fed the supplemented diets during the finisher phase (Group D) had significantly higher weight gain during the third week of the finisher period; the overall weight change did not significantly vary, though. This suggests that the anti-inflammatory, anti-fungal, antiviral, blood purifying effects of the spices under investigation manifest more in older birds thereby aiding in the digestion by increasing the motility of the intestinal tract as well as increasing gastro-intestinal enzyme secretions. This is consistent with the report by Diana (2016) that cinnamon will not lead to long-term weight loss. The non-significant variation in the dressing code is understandable since the weight gains did not vary among the groups during the finisher phase of the experiment. The mixed spices may be neither hypertrophic nor hypotrophic as indicated by the nonsignificant variations in the percentage organ to body weight ratio.   Broiler chickens maintained on diets 2 and 4 (Group E) had significantly higher (p<0.05) triacylglycerol and VLDL-C but lower LDL-C compared with the group fed diets 1 and 3 (control). All the tested groups had significantly lower (p<0.05) total cholesterol (Table 4). The mixed spices caused no significant (p>0.05) changes in the evaluated haematological profiles ( Table 5). Assessment of lipid profiles is important because alteration in serum lipid profile such as increase in total cholesterol (TC), triacylglycerol (TAG), and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and reduction in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) are key factors in cardiovascular disease progression. Atherogenic index (AI) (LDL-C/HDL-C) and coronary risk index (CRI) (TC/HDL-C) are even considered stronger markers for predicting the risk of atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease (Kazemi et al., 2018). In chickens, herpes virus infection of arterial smooth muscle cells has been shown to cause cholesteryl ester (CE) accumulation (Hsu et al., 1995), leading to atherosclerosis (Fabricant and Fabricant, 1999). The association of cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection in chickens with cardiovascular diseases has been reported (Cheng et al., 2009). The significantly lower LDL-C is instructive because it is the major source of lipids that accumulate in the atherosclerotic plaques (Summerhill et al., 2019). Atherosclerosis develops when lowdensity lipoprotein molecules (LDL) become oxidized (ldl-ox) by free radicals, particularly oxygen free radicals (ROS) (Jagdish, 2009). Therefore, supplementation with the spices particularly in the finisher phase could protect the birds from atherogenic and cardiovascular related problems. This could be achieved through; the antiviral and antibacterial activities of the spices which may confer protection against the herpes virus and cytomegalovirus infections. The antioxidant properties of the spices could also decrease the oxidation of LDL which is the major cause of atherosclerosis. In addition, the spices decrease the concentration of circulating LDL-C. Although the two groups respectively maintained on diets 2 and 4 (Group E) and 1 and 4 (Group F) had significantly lower LDL-C, inclusion of the mixed spices only in the Finisher may give better result in terms of protection against atherogenesis and CVD. This is so because Group E also had significantly higher TG and VLDL-C both of which are also factors in development of atherosclerosis and CVD. Plasma very low density lipoprotein (VLDL) had long been recognised as a useful parameter to infer the degree of fatness in chickens and decreasing its level, by any mean, causes decrease in abdominal fat in broiler chickens (Whithead and Griffin;Whithead et al., 1986). This is consistent with some other findings on the effect of some spices on the lipid profile (Utami et al., 2017;Puvača et al., 2015;Elbagir et al., 2013). However, Idoko et al. (2019) reported that combination of dried and pulverized garlic, ginger and pomegranate in ratio of 2:2:1 respectively may have no effect on the lipid profiles of broiler. Compared with the control, the spices had no significant effect on erythropoiesis as shown by the non-significant variations in haematological parameters.  Conclusion: Having investigated broiler chickens fed diets supplemented with a mixture of ginger, garlic and cinnamon, it is our conclusion that mixture of the spices has no effects on the overall weight gain, carcass traits and haematological profiles but could decrease the risk of atherogenesis and CVD in broiler chickens.