Effects of early-age feed restriction and thermal conditioning on the physiological and performance responses of broiler chickens under heat stress
Abstract The perinatal experiences in broiler chickens can have a significant impact on the phenotypes of offspring and can affect how they interact with their environment, affecting their health, productivity and welfare. This study aimed to evaluate the synergistic effect of early-age feed restric...
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Nature Portfolio
2025-08-01
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-01048-5 |
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| author | Aderanti Ifeoluwa Oni Yusuf Olatunji Bello Damilola Janet Ibigbami Christianah Adewumi Ishola Segun Oluwafemi Adesanya Daniel Adeyinka Adeniran Oyegunle Emmanuel Oke |
| author_facet | Aderanti Ifeoluwa Oni Yusuf Olatunji Bello Damilola Janet Ibigbami Christianah Adewumi Ishola Segun Oluwafemi Adesanya Daniel Adeyinka Adeniran Oyegunle Emmanuel Oke |
| author_sort | Aderanti Ifeoluwa Oni |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract The perinatal experiences in broiler chickens can have a significant impact on the phenotypes of offspring and can affect how they interact with their environment, affecting their health, productivity and welfare. This study aimed to evaluate the synergistic effect of early-age feed restriction and thermal conditioning on the physiological responses of broiler chickens in hot tropical environments. Two hundred forty male Marshall broiler chicks were assigned to four treatments with four replicates of fifteen birds each. The treatments comprised: broiler chicks raised conventionally (CO), broiler chicks exposed to 60% feed restriction at days 4, 5 and 6 (FR), chicks thermally-conditioned (38 °C) at day 5(TC) for 24 h and broiler chicks subjected to thermal conditioning at (38 °C) at day five and exposed to 60% feed restriction at 4,5 and 6 (TCFR). A completely randomized design was used for the experiment. The results obtained revealed that the final body weights of TCFR chickens were significantly higher (P < 0.05) than TC, which were higher (P < 0.05) than FR and CO chickens. The feed conversion ratio of CO chickens was higher (P < 0.05) than those of TC, FR and TCFR. A higher (P < 0.05)concentration of serum malondialdehyde was recorded in CO chickens than the other treatment groups. Overall, this study has demonstrated that the combination of early feed restriction and thermal conditioning positively affected broiler chickens’ growth performance and antioxidant status in hot tropical environments. The findings of this study suggest that the use of early-age feed restriction and thermal conditioning could be beneficial in alleviating heat stress in broiler chickens. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-89aa790750a44e0da8fa760b7995a3db |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-08-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
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| series | Scientific Reports |
| spelling | doaj-art-89aa790750a44e0da8fa760b7995a3db2025-08-20T03:42:27ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-08-0115111310.1038/s41598-025-01048-5Effects of early-age feed restriction and thermal conditioning on the physiological and performance responses of broiler chickens under heat stressAderanti Ifeoluwa Oni0Yusuf Olatunji Bello1Damilola Janet Ibigbami2Christianah Adewumi Ishola3Segun Oluwafemi Adesanya4Daniel Adeyinka Adeniran5Oyegunle Emmanuel Oke6Animal Physiology Department, Federal University of AgricultureAnimal Physiology Department, Federal University of AgricultureAnimal Production and Health Department, Federal University of AgricultureAnimal Physiology Department, Federal University of AgricultureAnimal Physiology Department, Federal University of AgricultureCentre of Excellence in Agricultural Development and Sustainable Environment, Federal University of AgricultureAnimal Physiology Department, Federal University of AgricultureAbstract The perinatal experiences in broiler chickens can have a significant impact on the phenotypes of offspring and can affect how they interact with their environment, affecting their health, productivity and welfare. This study aimed to evaluate the synergistic effect of early-age feed restriction and thermal conditioning on the physiological responses of broiler chickens in hot tropical environments. Two hundred forty male Marshall broiler chicks were assigned to four treatments with four replicates of fifteen birds each. The treatments comprised: broiler chicks raised conventionally (CO), broiler chicks exposed to 60% feed restriction at days 4, 5 and 6 (FR), chicks thermally-conditioned (38 °C) at day 5(TC) for 24 h and broiler chicks subjected to thermal conditioning at (38 °C) at day five and exposed to 60% feed restriction at 4,5 and 6 (TCFR). A completely randomized design was used for the experiment. The results obtained revealed that the final body weights of TCFR chickens were significantly higher (P < 0.05) than TC, which were higher (P < 0.05) than FR and CO chickens. The feed conversion ratio of CO chickens was higher (P < 0.05) than those of TC, FR and TCFR. A higher (P < 0.05)concentration of serum malondialdehyde was recorded in CO chickens than the other treatment groups. Overall, this study has demonstrated that the combination of early feed restriction and thermal conditioning positively affected broiler chickens’ growth performance and antioxidant status in hot tropical environments. The findings of this study suggest that the use of early-age feed restriction and thermal conditioning could be beneficial in alleviating heat stress in broiler chickens.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-01048-5Feed restrictionThermal conditioningHeatStressBroilerThermotolerance |
| spellingShingle | Aderanti Ifeoluwa Oni Yusuf Olatunji Bello Damilola Janet Ibigbami Christianah Adewumi Ishola Segun Oluwafemi Adesanya Daniel Adeyinka Adeniran Oyegunle Emmanuel Oke Effects of early-age feed restriction and thermal conditioning on the physiological and performance responses of broiler chickens under heat stress Scientific Reports Feed restriction Thermal conditioning Heat Stress Broiler Thermotolerance |
| title | Effects of early-age feed restriction and thermal conditioning on the physiological and performance responses of broiler chickens under heat stress |
| title_full | Effects of early-age feed restriction and thermal conditioning on the physiological and performance responses of broiler chickens under heat stress |
| title_fullStr | Effects of early-age feed restriction and thermal conditioning on the physiological and performance responses of broiler chickens under heat stress |
| title_full_unstemmed | Effects of early-age feed restriction and thermal conditioning on the physiological and performance responses of broiler chickens under heat stress |
| title_short | Effects of early-age feed restriction and thermal conditioning on the physiological and performance responses of broiler chickens under heat stress |
| title_sort | effects of early age feed restriction and thermal conditioning on the physiological and performance responses of broiler chickens under heat stress |
| topic | Feed restriction Thermal conditioning Heat Stress Broiler Thermotolerance |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-01048-5 |
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