Probiotics in Poultry and Pig Nutrition Basics and Benefits

Dr. Tobias Steiner

BIOMIN Holding GmbH, 3130 Herzogenburg, Austria, e-mail: tobias.steiner@biomin.net
Characterisation
Since the importance of a well-balanced gut microflora for adequate health and high performance
has been recognised, feeding strategies have been directed to control the microbial
gastrointestinal environment by nutritional means. One key strategy is to feed directly the
microorganisms which are supposed to exert beneficial effects in the gut. Probiotics are live
microorganisms which are supplemented to the feed in order to establish a beneficial gut
microflora (Fuller, 1989). Thus, probiotics have the potential to beneficially affect gut health by
modification of the gut microflora, especially in young animals, in which a stable gut microflora
is not yet established.
Microorganisms used as probiotics in animal nutrition
In human nutrition, Lactobacilli and Bifidobacteria are frequently included in yoghurts and other
milk products. However, due to their poor stability during storage, their application in animal
nutrition is rather limited. Probiotic feed additives generally consist of one single strain or a
combination of several strains of bacteria, Bacillus spores or yeasts species (multi-strain).
Preparations authorised for use in animal nutrition in the European Union include different
strains of Enterococcus, Bacillus, Lactobacillus, Pediococcus or Saccharomyces.
How they work
The mode of action of probiotic feed additives is mainly based on three principles:
Competitive exclusion
Bacterial antagonism
Immune modulation
The benefit of probiotics with respect to health status and performance is expected to be highest
in young animals such as piglets, newly-hatched chickens or calves, because these animals have
not yet developed a stable gut microflora. Moreover, when animals undergo therapeutic treatment
of diseases with antibiotics, the gut microflora is generally decimated. Therefore, administration
of probiotics after antibiotic treatment assists in re-establishing a beneficial gut microflora to
prevent the host from recurrent pathogenic colonization.
Competitive exclusion
The concept of competitive exclusion indicates that cultures of selected, beneficial
microorganisms, supplemented to the feed, compete with potentially harmful bacteria in terms of
adhesion sites and organic substrates (mainly carbon and energy sources). Probiotics may
colonise and multiply in the gut, thereby blocking receptor sites and preventing the attachment of
other bacteria including harmful species such as enteropathogenic E. coli or Salmonella.
Undoubtedly, probiotics have the potential to decrease the risk of infections and intestinal
disorders. As shown in in vitro studies by Hillman et al. (1995), growth of enterotoxic E. coli was
successfully inhibited by different strains of Lactobacilli. As reported by Berchieri et al. (2006),
a combination of different lactic acid bacteria significantly reduced the levels of Salmonella
enteritidis in caecal contents of broilers which had been orally inoculated with the pathogen. In

piglets, attachment of enterotoxic E. coli to the small intestinal epithelium was inhibited by
dietary supplementation with Enterococcus faecium (Jin et al., 2000).
Bacterial antagonism
Probiotic microorganisms, once established in the gut, may produce substances with bactericidal
or bacteriostatic properties (bacteriocins) such as lactoferrin, lysozyme, hydrogen peroxide as
well as several organic acids. These substances have a detrimental impact on harmful bacteria,
which is primarily due to a lowering of the gut pH (Kelly and King, 2001; Conway, 1996). A
decrease in pH may partially offset the low secretion of hydrochloric acid in the stomach of
weanling piglets. In addition, competition for energy and nutrients between probiotic and other
bacteria may result in a suppression of pathogenic species (Ewing and Cole, 1994). The impact of
probiotics, applied though feed or feed and drinking water, in comparison to AGPs on gut
microflora of broilers has been demonstrated by Mountzouris et al. (2006) (Figure 1). In total 400
day old broilers were fed corn-soybean meal-based diets with or without supplementation of
either a newly-developed multi-strain probiotic feed additive based on Lactobacilli,
Bifidobacteria, Enterococcus and Pediococcus (PoultryStar) or a commercial antibiotic growth
promoter (AGP, Avilamycin). Compared to the control and AGP treatment, the probiotic additive
significantly increased the numbers of beneficial Bifidobacteria, Lactobacilli and Gram-positive
cocci. Moreover, growth performance in birds fed supplemental synbiotics was similar as
compared to birds fed the AGP.

Figure 1. Impact of probiotics (PoultryStar) and AGP on caecal counts of different bacterial species (adapted from
Mountzouris et al., 2006)

Immune modulation
The development and activation of the humoral and cellular gut-associated immune system is
largely affected by the development of the gut microflora (Cebra, 1999). According to Lan et al.
(2005), microbial communities can support the animals defence against invading pathogens by
stimulating gastrointestinal immune response.

Effects of probiotics on poultry performance

Addition of probiotics has shown beneficial effects on growth performance of poultry. In broilers
supplementation of a control diet with probiotics based on Bacillus cereus or Saccharomyces
boulardii improved feed conversion rate by 12 and 11%, respectively (Gil de los Santos et al.,
2005). Moreover, after 47 days, average live weight was significantly higher (16 and 7%,
respectively) in birds fed the two types of probiotics in comparison to the control group. The
effect on growth performance of the same probiotic preparation was investigated in a study with
200 day-old broilers (Mohnl et al., 2006). Administration of the multi-strain probiotic
(PoultryStar) in the drinking water significantly improved live weight (4%) and daily weight
gain (4%) (Figure 2) and numerically reduced mortality rate (48 %) in comparison with a
negative control.

Figure 2. Effect of probiotic preparation PoultryStar on performance parameters in broilers. a.b Significant
difference between treatments (P< 0.05)

In turkeys, Mnner et al. (2002) reported a 1.5 and 2.0% improvement in average daily weight
gain and feed conversion rate, respectively, when diets were supplemented with a blend of
different probiotic strains originating from Bacillus or Enterococcus. Furthermore, mortality rate
was decreased by 16% in birds fed supplemental probiotics. In a study by Mountzouris et al.
(2006) with broilers, the above mentioned multi-strain probiotic additive also increased average
daily weight gain and feed efficiency (by 3 and 2%, respectively, in two applications).
Effects of probiotics on pig performance
According to Zani et al. (1998), supplementation of diets with a probiotic preparation based on
Bacillus cereus significantly improved daily weight gain and feed conversion ratio by 24 and
19%, respectively. In another trial with piglets (Kyriakis et al., 1999), addition of probiotics
originating from Bacillus licheniformis to a control diet improved average daily weight gain as
well. Moreover, the incidence and severity of diarrhoea as well as mortality rate were
significantly decreased in a study by Kyriakis et al. (1999). Shim (2005) fed a two- or multistrain probiotic feed additive to growing pigs and observed significant improvements in average
daily weight gain and feed efficiency as well. Additionally, administration of the multi-strain

probiotic tended to cause higher weight gain and feed efficiency in comparison to the two-strain
probiotic, indicating a synergistic effect of different probiotic strains under in vivo conditions.
Conclusion
Probiotics have great potential to beneficially affect the gut microflora and hence improve gut
health in nonruminants. Recent data confirms that a combination of several bacterial strains in a
multi-strain preparation is highly efficient in poultry feeding.
References are available from the author upon request.