Effect of Moringa oleifera Leaf Powder Supplementation on Growth Performance, Digestive Enzyme Activity, Meat Quality, and Cecum Microbiota of Ningdu Yellow Chickens

This study aimed to investigate the impact of dietary supplementation with Moringa oleifera leaf powder (MOLP) on the growth performance, digestive enzyme activity, meat quality, and cecum microbiota of Ningdu yellow chickens. A total of 300 78-day-old Ningdu yellow chickens with similar initial body weights were randomly distributed into five treatments consisting of six replicates of 10 birds. The control group (M0) was fed a basal diet, and the experimental groups were fed diets supplemented with 0.5% (M0.5), 1% (M1), 2% (M2), and 4% (M4) of MOLP, respectively. Our results showed that dietary supplementation with 2% MOLP significantly ( p < 0.05) decreased the feed to gain (F/G) and showed a quadratic ( p < 0.05) decrease with the level of MOLP. Dietary supplementation with 1~4% MOLP resulted in a significant increase ( p < 0.05) in serum total superoxide dismutase (T-SOD) activity and total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC). Furthermore, both serum T-SOD and T-AOC exhibited linear and quadratic increases ( p < 0.01) in response to the supplementation with MOLP in the diets. Dietary supplementation with 1~4% MOLP significantly ( p < 0.05) decreased serum uric acid (UA) level. Additionally, 4% MOLP significantly ( p < 0.05) decreased triglycerides (TG), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels, and showed linear and quadratic effects. The activity of lipase in the duodenum showed a linear decreasing trend ( p < 0.05) with the level of MOLP, while the activities of α-amylase (both in duodenum and jejunum) showed a linear and quadratic increasing trend ( p < 0.05). In addition, there was a linear decrease response in abdominal fat ( p < 0.05) to MOLP supplementation levels in the diets. In terms of meat quality, dietary supplementation with 4% MOLP significantly reduced ( p < 0.05) the L*45 min and L*24 h values of the breast muscle, and drip loss had a linear decreasing trend ( p < 0.05). In terms of cecum microbiota, dietary supplementation with 1~4% MOLP significantly increased the Bacteroidota abundance but decreased the Firmicutes abundance ( p < 0.05). Overall, dietary supplementation with MOLP improved the growth performance and meat quality of Ningdu yellow chickens through improving the antioxidant function, intestinal digestive enzyme activity, and the cecal microbial structure. The optimum level of MOLP in the diet of Nindu yellow chicken is recommended to be 2.59%.