Assessment of Hermetia illucens pupal exuviae fermented by Bacillus amyloliquefaciens as functional feed additive for red feather native chickens

• Published in: Poultry science Vol. 104; no. 10; p. 105584
• Main Authors: Chang, Che Lun, Chang, Shen Chang, Lin, Li Jen, Chang, Jhih Siang, Lin, Min Jung, Lee, Tzu Tai
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Inc 01.10.2025; Elsevier
• Subjects: Bacillus amyloliquefaciens; Chitin; Chitooligosaccharides; Hermetia illucens; Red feather native chicken; FI; BSFP; Alk-P; Hermetia illucens; MDA; CHO; UA; Chitooligosaccharides; GLU; HDLC; BWG; BSF; CREA; BW; FBSFP; Red feather native chicken; BUN; SGOT; GSH-Px; COS; SOD; Bacillus amyloliquefaciens; Chitin; TG; FCR; TNF-α; CAT; SGPT; BA
• ISSN: 0032-5791; 1525-3171; 1525-3171
• DOI: 10.1016/j.psj.2025.105584

The purpose of this study was to evaluate black soldier fly pupal exuviae (BSFP) fermented by Bacillus amyloliquefaciens (FBSFP) as a functional feed additive for Red Feather Native chickens. Moreover, it investigated the effects of the feed additive on growth performance, blood parameters, intestinal morphology, and microbiota composition. These chickens were allocated into five groups and their feeds are as follows: basal diet (control), basal diet supplemented with 1 × 107 CFU/kg BA (BA), 0.5 % BSFP (BSFP2), 0.25 % FBSFP (contains 5 × 106 CFU/kg BA, FBSFP1), and 0.5 % FBSFP (contains 1 × 107 CFU/kg BA, FBSFP2). The experiment lasted for 70 days. Although there were no differences in the growth performance (1-70 d) among the five groups, the count of lactic acid bacteria in the ileum increased significantly in all groups, while the coliform counts decreased significantly in BA group compared to the control group. FBSFP1 resulted in higher jejunal villi height and crypt depth ratio. All treatments decreased the serum MDA contents of chickens. However, the serum catalase and glutathione peroxidase activities of FBSFP2 were significantly higher than those of other groups. Supplementation with FBSFP could significantly increase serum tumor necrosis factor-α levels in chickens and significantly decreased the lightness (L*) of breast muscle, meanwhile, significantly reducing the cooking loss of thigh muscle at the 0.5 % supplementation. Except for the BSFP group, supplementation with both BA and FBSFP (0.25 % and 0.5 %) in the diets decreased the counts of coliform bacteria and indole concentration in the litter. In conclusion, FBSFP demonstrated great potential as a feed additive for chickens by improving the intestinal microflora, morphology, and antioxidant capacity of chickens, and offered positive effects on litter quality.