Effects of allicin on growth performance, slaughter performance, antioxidant, immune parameters and economic benefits of black goats

This study aimed to reveal the effects of allicin on growth performance, slaughter performance, serum biochemical parameters, and economic benefits of Guizhou black goats. 32 Guizhou black male goats with a mean initial body weight of 18.28 ± 0.41 kg were selected and randomly divided into 4 groups with 8 experimental replicates in each group (n = 8). The control group was fed a basal diet without allicin, while the other three treatment groups were supplemented with low (0.5 g/head/day), medium (0.75 g/head/day), and high (1 g/head/day) amounts of allicin in the basal diet. The findings indicated that the medium allicin group improved ( P < 0.05) dry matter intake (DMI), final body weight (FBW), hot carcass weight (HCW), dressing percentage (DP), girth rib tissue thickness (GR value), and the weight of liver, spleen, and kidney in Guizhou black goats compared to the control group. Moreover, the average daily gain (ADG) in all allicin-supplemented groups was higher ( P = 0.006) than that in the control group, whereas the feed conversion ratio was lower ( P = 0.020). In the medium allicin group, serum levels of glucose, blood urea nitrogen (BUN), triglycerides (TG), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), malondialdehyde (MDA), oxidized glutathione (GSSG), and aspartate aminotransferase (ALT) were lower ( P < 0.05) than those in the control group. Conversely, levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), superoxide dismutase (SOD), total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC), and interleukin-10 (IL-10) were higher ( P < 0.05) than those in the control group. Notably, in all allicin-supplemented groups, immunoglobulin A (IgA), immunoglobulin M (IgM), and immunoglobulin G (IgG) levels were improved ( P < 0.05) compared to the control group, whereas tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and alanine aminotransferase (AST) levels were reduced ( P < 0.001). Finally, compared to the control group, allicin supplementation reduced ( P = 0.041) feed weight gain cost (FWGC). Additionally, the medium allicin group demonstrated a superior effect in enhancing weight gain benefit (WGB) ( P = 0.030). In conclusion, allicin supplementation improved feed intake, growth performance, slaughter performance, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, immunomodulatory, economic benefits, and hypoglycemic effects of Guizhou black goats. Among the groups, the medium allicin group exhibited the most significant improvements.