Impacts of Withania coagulans extracts, linseed, and fish oil on performance, tibia bone characteristics, and mineralization in broiler chicken

This study was designed to evaluate the impact of Withania coagulans extracts [fruit (WFE) and root (WRE)], linseed oil (LO), and fish oil (FO) on growth performance, tibia bone characteristics, calcium and phosphorus content in tibia and serum, biochemical indicators of bone metabolism, and certain blood parameters in broilers. The study involved 720 male Ross 308 broilers, which were allotted to a completely random design containing 9 treatments with 8 replications of 10 birds each. The experimental treatments included a basal diet (Control), basal diet + 200 mg/kg WRE or WFE, basal diet + 2% fish oil or flaxseed oil, a diet containing 2% fish oil + 200 mg/kg WRE or WFE, and a diet containing 2% flaxseed oil + 200 mg/kg WRE or WFE. Body weight and body weight gain increased from 1–21 and 22–42 days with the addition of FO and WFE compared to the control group. The highest values of bone stiffness, ultimate load, and mineral density (BMD) were observed in birds supplemented with a mixture of FO + WFE, while the lowest values were observed in birds fed the basal diet without supplements. Diets containing fish oil supplemented with WC extracts led to increased serum calcium and tibia calcium levels compared to other groups (P≤ 0.05). Supplementation with LO and FO reduced PGE2 concentration compared to other treatment groups (P ≤ 0.05). No significant difference was observed in serum serum tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP) levels across all experimental groups (P>0.05). In conclusion, the combination of oil source (FO) and extract (WFE) in the diet improved the performance of birds, increased bone characteristics and calcium levels in serum and tibia, and altered biochemical indicators of bone metabolism in serum, suggesting that this combination could be beneficial to the health and performance of broilers.