IMPACT OF DIETARY ADDITION OF NETTLE PLANT AS A NATURAL ANTIOXIDANT ON THE PHYSIOLOGICAL PERFORMANCE OF BROILER

A. Rahawi, Ghadeer Abd Al-Monem; Younis, Wael Thanoon; Abdul-Majeed, Abdullah Fathi

doi:10.33899/mja.2025.156860.1529

	IMPACT OF DIETARY ADDITION OF NETTLE PLANT AS A NATURAL ANTIOXIDANT ON THE PHYSIOLOGICAL PERFORMANCE OF BROILER
Mesopotamia Journal of Agriculture
Article 6, Volume 53, Issue 2, June 2025, Pages 81-91 PDF (482.67 K)
Document Type: Research
DOI: 10.33899/mja.2025.156860.1529
Authors
Ghadeer Abd Al-Monem A. Rahawi^* ¹; Wael Thanoon Younis²; Abdullah Fathi Abdul-Majeed¹
¹Department of Animal Production, College of Agriculture and Forestry, University of Mosul, Iraq.
²Department of Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Mosul, Iraq.
Abstract
This study was conducted to investigate the nettle plant's physiological effects on the broilers' antioxidant status. At one day of age, 240 chicks (Ross 308) were randomly distributed in three groups (80 birds/group, weighing 40.6±0.3 g each), with four replications for each, and were reared until 42 days of age. The groups were as follows: 1^st group (control): received a basal diet without addition; 2^nd and 3^rd groups: received a basal diet with 2.5 and 5 g nettle/kg diet, respectively. The addition of the nettle resulted in a significant (P≤0.05) increase in total antioxidants at the 5 g/kg diet dose. Similarly, levels of glutathione and glutathione peroxidase increased. On the contrary, the malondialdehyde decreased, and it was significant at the 5 g/kg diet dose, which led to a substantial decrease in corticosterone compared to the control group. Insulin-like growth factor-1 was not significantly affected by adding nettle, while leptin (P≤0.05) decreased significantly compared to the control group. On the other hand, nettle significantly improved the broiler's productivity, especially at the 5 g nettle/kg diet dose, as mean final body weight, total weight gain, and feed consumption significantly (P≤0.05) increased. The feed conversion ratio significantly improved at 42 days of age compared to the control group. We included that the nettle plant can improve the physiological performance and the antioxidant status of broilers and may also reduce oxidative stress, thereby promote growth and improve feed conversion efficiency.
Keywords
Broilers; corticosterone; glutathione; glutathione peroxidase; leptin

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