Effect of sodium selenite and selenium yeast on performance, egg quality, antioxidant capacity, and selenium deposition of laying hens

This study compared the effects of sodium selenite and selenium yeast and their combination on laying performance, egg quality, antioxidant capacity, and selenium (Se) contents in tissues and eggs. Two-hundred-eighty-eight Jing Hong layers that were similar in laying rate (87.5 +/- 0.38%) and body weight (1.70 +/- 0.02 kg) were randomly distributed into 4 treatments for 11 wk (from 203 d old to 279 d old) with 9 replicates of 8 hens per replicate. The diets (cornsoybean meal diet) were supplemented with 0 [ blank control (BC)], 0.3 mg/kg Se from sodium selenite (SS), 0.15 mg/kg Se from sodium selenite and 0.15 mg/kg Se from Se yeast (SS+SY), or 0.3 mg/kg Se from Se yeast (SY). Results showed that the laying rate of the SS+SY group increased significantly (P < 0.05) compared to the BC and SY groups. There were no differences (P > 0.05) in egg quality between the Se-supplemented diets and the BC diet. The serum glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity was increased (P < 0.01) in hens fed Se-supplemented diets compared to the BC diet. The liver superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity of the SY group was increased significantly (P < 0.05) compared to the BC group. Significant increase (P < 0.01) due to SY supplementation was noted in the serum vitamin E content compared to BC and SS. Layers fed Se-supplemented diets had higher (P < 0.01) contents of Se in the serum, liver, and kidney compared to the BC diet. Compared to BC, Se content in eggs was significantly increased (P < 0.05) by feeding supplementary Se. In conclusion, the effects of SS and Se yeast were approximately equal in promoting antioxidant capacity of laying hens, while Se yeast is easier to deposit into eggs and tissues. The diet with added equal amounts of the 2 sources of Se was more cost effective and affordable than a comparable amount of Se yeast to obtain the promising production performance and nearly similar Se deposition.