Effects of Induced High Ammonia Concentration in Air on Gross and Histopathology of Different Body Organs in Experimental Broiler Birds and its Amelioration by Different Modifiers

The study was carried out on 100 broiler birds to ascertain the effect of ammonia and different ammonia modifiers on various parameters. For this purpose, the birds were divided into five groups and different treatments were allotted including potassium aluminium sulphate, aluminium silicate and Yucca schidigera plant extract. A completely sealed environment was created to produce ammonia. Results showed that ammonia at 25 ppm did not affect the carcass weight, relative organs weight and antibody titer. Gross and histopathological changes like pale liver, congestion in lungs and necrosis in kidneys were observed in positive control group, while minor changes were seen in all treatment groups. Grossly, bursa of Fabricious appear smaller in size, while on histological examination it showed depletion of lymphocytes in positive control. The level of urea (18.53 mg/100 ml), creatinine (0.30/mg/100 ml), AST (53.0 IU/L) and ALT (7.50 IU/L) were increased. The antibody titer (5.65 log(2)) was not affected by 25 ppm of ammonia however, it was 35% higher than both the control groups in aluminium silicate group (7.67 log(2)). A lower spleen weight (0.10 g) and kidney (0.73 g) weight, while higher levels of urea (15.83 mg/100 ml) and creatinine (0.31 mg/100 ml) were observed in Yucca treated groups. The AST (53 IU/L) and ALT (8.26 IU/L) were found significantly (P<0.05) higher in alum treated groups than both control groups. All the treatments reduced the effects of ammonia in broilers, however, in overall aluminium silicate results were better than other treatments. The study concludes that, all the three amendments are useful in reducing the ammonia and improves the production and function of the broiler chicken. (C) 2019 PVJ. All rights reserved