Production performance, serum lipid profile and gut health in Indian native Kadaknath chickens fed diet incorporated with liquorice root powder

The principal constituent of liquorice root (<i>Glycyrrhiza glabra</i>) is glycyrrhizin, a triterpene saponin that is approximately many times sweeter than sucrose, the main active component. This study aimed to investigate the dietary liquorice root powder (LRP) on production performance, serum biochemical, gut health and carcass characteristics of Kadaknath (KN) birds as replacement of antibiotic growth promoter. Day-old Kadaknath chicks (n = 240) with uniform body weight were selected randomly and divided into six different treatments, each one with five replicates and eight birds per replicate, and raised in battery brooder cages for 15 weeks. Corn soya based basal diet (T₁) was prepared. In addition to the basal diet, five experimental diets were created with varying amounts of LRP i.e., T₂: T₁+ 0.1 % LRP, T₃: T₁+ 0.3 % LRP, T₄: T₁+ 0.5 % LRP, T₅: T₁+ 0.7 % LRP, and T₆: T₁+ 0.0335 % Chlortetracycline (CTC). Body weight gain and feed intake significantly (P ≤ 0.05) increased in T₃ group on 0-5 wks and 5-9 wks of age. Significant (P ≤ 0.01) reduction in the feed intake was noted in the T₅ group which was fed with maximum level (0.7 %) of inclusion of LRP. Dietary inclusion of liquorice in higher doses resulted in a significant (P ≤ 0.05) decrease in serum lipids such as triglyceride, LDL, and total cholesterol concentrations and a significant increase in the HDL cholesterol. Decrease in the coliform count of caecum significantly (P ≤ 0.05), but dose-dependent lactobacilli proliferation was seen in the caecum of treated birds (P ≤ 0.01). Supplementation of liquorice root powder in kadaknath birds resulted in significant increase (P ≤ 0.05) in the villus length and VH: CD ratio. Thus it may be concluded that dietary supplementation of liquorice root powder improved the bird's growth performance, serum lipid profile and gut health of Kadaknath birds.