immune system

Introduction : 

Diarrhea is the main cause of calf mortality in the first two weeks after birth. Even when calves recover from diarrhea, they may subsequently show impaired growth. Considering this fact and especially following the ban of antibiotics in many countries, it is very important to identify effective anti-diarrheal supplements for use in suckling calves. Zinc is an effective anti-inflammatory and anti-diarrheal substance that improves the function of the immune system, reduces the number of pathogenic bacteria and increases the relative abundance of beneficial microbes in the digestive system. It is thought that the mechanisms of anti-diarrheal effect of zinc element are due to regulation of intestinal fluid transfer and mucosal integrity, strengthening of immunity and modulation of oxidative stress. The purpose of this experiment is to investigate the use of different proportions of organic (methionine-zinc) and inorganic (zinc oxide) sources of zinc to prevent diarrhea, improve the condition of the immune system and performance indicators of suckling calves. 

A total of 50 suckling Holstein calves were used over 70 days in a completely randomized design with 5 treatments and 10 replications. The experimental treatments were different proportions of organic and inorganic zinc supplements, including 1) zinc supplementation, 100% Methionine-zinc 2) combination of 75% methionine-zinc and 25% zinc oxide, 3) combination of 50% methionine-zinc and 50% zinc oxide, 4) combination of 25% methionine-zinc and 75% zinc oxide, and 5) 100% zinc oxide. All treatments received 1.96 mg of zinc supplementation per kilogram of body weight. Zinc supplements mixed with milk were fed to the calves from day one to day 14, and performance monitoring continued for 70 days. The stool score was evaluated on a scale of 1 to 4. Diarrhea was defined as the presence of grade 3 or 4 stools for 2 consecutive days. Data were analyzed in a completely randomized design using the GLM procedure of SAS. For variables measured over time (average daily gain, dry matter intake, and feed conversion ratio), time was added to the model as a repeated factor. 

The results showed that experimental treatments did not significantly effect the average daily gain, dry matter intake, and feed conversion ratio of the calves fed with Different ratios of mineral (zinc oxide) and organic (methionine-zinc) sources of zinc. In addition, the average of fecal consistency score did not differ significantly among the treatments. The results blood analysis demonstrated that treatment 100% methionine-zinc had higher level of concentration alkaline phosphatase. However, among the treatments contained methionine-zinc, a decrease in the ratio of methionine-zinc resulted in a decrease in Alkaline phosphatase concentration. Higher ratios of zinc oxide caused a significant decrease in the concentration of superoxide dismutase in the blood on the 14th and 70th day of the experiment. Also, on the 70th day of the test, the antioxidant capacity of whole blood was significantly higher in treatments containing methionine-zinc than in treatment %100 zinc oxide. The results showed that other blood parameters were not significantly influenced by the treatments in this study. In general, production performance did not change in different ratios of organic and mineral sources, the lack of effect of replacing zinc oxide with methionine-zinc on the performance of the present calves may be due to the provision of sufficient levels of zinc for all calves. So that the zinc supplement, taking into account its purity percentage, reached the same amount (1.96 mg of zinc supplement per kilogram of body weight) in all treatments. 

In the present study, overall production performance and blood parameter concentrations did not change with different ratios of organic and mineral sources. However, the activity of antioxidant enzymes was higher with higher ratios of the organic supplement (methionine-zinc) compared to the mineral source (zinc oxide). The lack of positive effect of replacing zinc oxide with methionine-zinc on the performance of the present calves may be due to the provision of sufficient levels of zinc for all calves. And it can be said that when a mineral is supplied at a sufficient level, the chemical form and bioavailability of resources are less important on performance.

In this study in order to estimate inbreeding coefficient and identify the ROH Islands associated with the genes under selection, the 50k BeadChip genotyped data of 206 sheep from 3 different Egyptian breeds were used. After quality control, 48361 SNPs in 204 sheep were remained for the future analysis. Inbreeding coefficient was calculated using four methods including, genomic relationship matrix (FGRM), excess of homozygosity (FHOM), correlation between uniting gametes (FUNI) using the GCTA 1.0 software and run of homozygosity (FROH) using the PLINK 1.9 software. One percent of SNP with the highest frequency in ROH were considered as ROH Islands. The lowest rate of inbreeding according to (FGRM, FHOM, and FUNI) was related to Wahati and the highest was related to Saidi breed. The highest amount of FROH (0.043) was observed in Saidi and the lowest amount (0.018) was observed in Barki breed. Average length of ROH ranged from 45.02 to 205.87 Mb, while the average number of ROH ranged from 8.14 to 14.07. The highest number ROH was observed on chromosome 2, while the lowest was on chromosome 26. Average inbreeding coefficient from FROH in Barki, Saidi and Wahati were estimated 0.018, 0.043 and 0.027 respectively. A total of 62 ROH Islands with length: 24.60 Kb to 13 Mb were identified, which covering less than 1% of the sheep genome. The ROH Islands was not distributed across the genome uniform and varied among breeds, but some common were identified. Bioinformatics analysis demonstrated that some of these genomic regions overlapped with reported genes that directly or indirectly influenced traits for adaptation and immune system (SEMA3D, CSF2, ITPR1), development of the skeletal muscle (UGGT1, ITGA2), and reproduction (ABHD16B). The results of this study revealed that, the selection processes in different sheep breeds for economic traits during several years, has led to the formation of many ROH islands in sheep genome, therefore scanning these regions at the genome level can be an alternative strategy to identify genes and associated loci with economic traits.

In order to investigate the effects of growth and immunity-stimulating additives based on medicinal plants with and without probiotics on the performance and physiological and metabolic parameters of broiler chickens, an experiment was conducted in a completely randomized design (factorial arrangment) with three types of additives (commercial Bioherbal additive, ASRI-I1 and ASRI-I2) and two levels of Gallipro probiotics (0, 200 g/ton), in 6 treatments and 4 repetitions and 15 pieces of mixed male and female chickens in each repetition.The effects of immune stimulants and probiotics on body weight, feed consumption, food conversion ratio, viability percentage and production index were not significant. Carcass percentage, thigh percentage, breast percentage, back and neck percentage, abdominal cavity fat percentage and relative weight of internal organs were not affected by immune stimulant and probiotic. The effect of herbal and probiotic immune stimulants on the response to sheep red blood cells, immunoglobulin G and immunoglobulin M was not significant.The effect of immune stimulants on the percentage of heterophils, lymphocytes and their ratio was significant (P<0.05). In the whole period, no significant difference was observed in most of the examined traits in broiler chickens fed with diets containing three different types of immune stimulants, but numerically, there were slight differences between them, and the addition of IASRI 1 had better effects. Among other additives, its use along with probiotics showed beneficial effects in improving the performance and immune responses of broiler chickens, therefore, IASRI 1 additive is recommended for additional studies and semi-industrial production.

Heat stress is one of the serious issue in poultry industry which causes significant economic losses. Decreasing feed consumption, increasing excretion and decreasing the bioavailability of nutrients during heat stress reduces the performance and immune response. Selenium is an essential trace element for humans and animals that plays a role in improving the antioxidant status and the immune system and inflammatory response. The goal of this study was to investigate the effects of different selenium sources [2-hydroxy-4- methyl seleno butanoic acid, selenomethionine and sodium selenite) on performance, carcass characteristics, antioxidant and immune response and blood characteristics in broiler under heat stress condition.

This experiment was conducted in a completely random designs with 240 Arbor Acres (Male) broilers chicks. Chicks were randomly distributed in 4 treatments and 6 replicates (10 chicks in each replicate). The experimental treatments include that: (1) basal diet + 0.3 mg 2-hydroxy-4- methyl seleno butanoic acid; (2) basal diet + 0.3 mg selenomethionine per kilogram of diet; (3) basal diet + 0.3 mg sodium selenite per kilogram of diet; (4) The basal diet that did not have any additives. The birds were kept at 32-340C (10.00 to 16.00; for 6 hours) from 22 to 42 days.

The results of this experiment showed that feed intake, body weight gains and feed conservation ratio were not affected by the experimental diets. The use of different sources of selenium had no significant effect on blood biochemical factors in broiler chickens under heat stress. dding selenium source with 0.3 mg/kg 2-hydroxy-4- methyl seleno butanoic acid significantly affected immunoglobulin G in comparison to other treatments. Diets containing selenium sources significantly increased the relative weight of the spleen compared to the control treatment (P < 0.05). The treatments of 2-hydroxy-4- methyl seleno butanoic acid and selenomethionine significantly decreased liver weight percent. The concentration of glutathione peroxidase, superoxide dismutase and catalase enzymes in blood were significantly increased by selenium sources in different treatments.

The use of selenium source improved the immune system and blood antioxidant status in broiler chickens.

Paratuberculosis, or Johne’s disease, is a chronic, granulomatous, gastrointestinal tract disease of goat and other ruminants caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium avium ssp. paratuberculosis (MAP). The clinical signs of disease in goat are pipestream diarrhea, weight loss, and edema due to hypoproteinemia caused by protein-losing enteropathy. Knowledge concerning genetics of susceptibility to MAP infection can contribute to disease control programs by facilitating genetic selection for a less susceptible population to reduce incidence of infection in the future. The opportunity for genetic improvement in susceptibility to infection is evidenced by estimates of heritability of MAP infection ranging from 0.03 to 0.28 (Kirkpatrick and Lett, 2018). Domestication and selection has significantly changed the behavioral and phenotypic traits in modern domestic animals. The selection of animals by humans left detectable signatures on the genome of modern goat. The identification of these signals can help us to improve the genetic characteristics of economically important traits in goat. Over the last decade, interest in detection of genes or genomic regions that are targeted by selection has been growing. Identifying signatures of selection can provide valuable insights about the genes or genomic regions that are or have been under selection pressure, which in turn leads to a better understanding of genotype-phenotype relationships. The aim of this study was to identify the selection signatures using the unbiased Theta method associated with resistance to Johne’s disease in two Italian goat breeds. The work described here is a case–control association study using the Illumina Caprine SNP50 BeadChip to unravel the genes involved in susceptibility of goats to Johne’s disease. Goats in herds with a high occurrence of Johne's disease were classified as healthy or infected based on the level of serum antibodies against MAP, and 331 animals were selected for the study. For the Siriana breed 174 samples (87 cases and 87 controls) were selected from 14 herds and for the Jonica breed 157 samples (77 cases and 80 controls) were selected from 10 herds. Cases were defined as animals serologically positive for MAP by ELISA with a sample to positive ratio (S/P) higher than 0.7 and MAP negative animals had a S/P lower than 0.6. Positive animals were tested twice with the ID Screen Paratuberculosis confirmation test. The 331 samples were genotyped using the Illumina GoatSNP50 BeadChip. SNP missing 5% of data, with MAF of <1% and Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium p-values <10−6 were removed. The genotyping efficiency for samples was also verified, and samples with more than 5% missing data were removed. Grouping was done to infer selection signatures based on FST statistic. Bioinformatics inquiries were conducted employing the Ensembl database (Cunningham et al., 2022), specifically for caprine genes (assembly ARS1). The aim was to pinpoint potential candidate genes that have either been previously reported in, or are situated within the genomic regions encompassing the peak of absolute extreme FST values. In this context, regions corresponding to the top and bottom 0.01% of acquired positive and negative FST scores were earmarked as areas undergoing selection. The identification of genes was executed through the application of a 250 Kb window both upstream and downstream of each core SNP. By applying a threshold at the 99.90 percentile of the obtained Theta (θ) values, a total of 13 distinct genomic regions were identified in the Jonica breed. These regions were situated across chromosomes 1, 5, 7 (in 2 regions), 8, 9 (in 2 regions), 11, 16, 17, 18, and 20 (in 2 regions). Similarly, in the Siriana breed, genomic regions were pinpointed on chromosomes 3, 5 (in 2 regions), 10, 12, 16, 17, 18, 23, 24, and 29. Further exploration through bioinformatics tools brought to light the overlap of these genomic regions with genes associated with the immune system, disease resistance, bacterial infection resilience, response to oxidative stress, and tumor suppression. The study population size is relatively modest, predominantly due to the intricacy of procuring a substantial volume of blood samples from goats within commercial herds that have been diagnosed with JD and are poised for culling. It's worth noting that JD diagnosis and culling procedures are not infallible preventive measures. The gradual progression of the disease often leads to late-stage diagnosis, allowing subclinical goats to intermittently excrete MAP in the environment. As the infection and disease progress, the fecal shedding of MAP increases and contributes to its horizontal transmission. In combination with genetic improvement (innate protection), vaccination (acquired protection) will support eradicating this incurable disease. To conclude, the findings of this study hold potential significance as they offer valuable insights for identifying genomic regions and subsequently, the genes that influence Johne's disease in goats. Nonetheless, additional research endeavors are essential to enhance and validate these outcomes. Utilizing a more extensive sample size, incorporating whole-genome sequencing, and implementing high-density genotyping are imperative steps to further refine and strengthen these findings.

 The Ferula badrakema from the Apiaceae family is a resinous plant with a strong smell that is native to Iran (Rechinger et al., 1994). The anti-bacterial and anti-fungal properties of Ferula badrakema are believed to be due to its high content of alpha-pinene and beta-pinene. Similar to other Ferula species, this plant is a rich source of sesquiterpene coumarins (Bukreeva and Pimenov, 1991). To the best of our knowledge, no study has been done on the volatile compounds of this species. However, studies on other species of this plant that grow in other parts of the world have been reported (Başer et al., 2000; Takeoka, 2001, Iranshahi et al., 2006). Saccharin is a sulfonamide produced from compounds found in coal tar (Abdelaziz et al., 2011). Its taste is 300 to 500 times sweeter than sucrose. Due to its high sweetness, it is widely used to improve feed palatability and can increase feed intake (Feighner et al., 1987). Studies by Han et al. (2019) have shown that Japanese quails prefer sucrose solution instead of ordinary water due to its palatability. However, few studies have been conducted on the physiological relationship between sweeteners and the gastrointestinal tract of broilers (Kimmich et al., 1989). Considering that most medicinal plants have a bitter taste and reduce the feed consumption and growth of chickens, this experiment aimed to investigate the effects of adding sweeteners and preventing the activation of bitter taste receptors of the Ferula plant on the growth performance, immune system and blood metabolites of chickens. This experiment was conducted using 468 one-day-old commercial broilers from the Ross 308 strain with 6 treatments, 6 replicates and 13 birds each in a completely randomized design as a 3×2 factorial arrangement (3 levels of Ferula badrakema root powder at the levels of 0, 0.75 and 1.5% and two levels of 0 and 0.15% sodium saccharin in diet). Standard diets during the periods of starter (1-10 d), grower (11-24 d) and finisher (25-42 d) were used. The diets were formulated using the UFFDA software to provide all the requirements of the broilers based on the recommendations of the Ross 308 strain (2019). Throughout the experiment, the birds had ad libitum access to water and feed and an hour darkness and 23 hours of light was provided. The initial temperature of the room was 32°C, which was reduced by 0.5°C per day according to the Ross company guidelines, until it reached 21°C at the age of 21 days and remained constant after that. Average feed intake, weight gain and feed conversion ratio for each group were measured at the end of each period. To measure blood parameters, one male bird at the end of the experiment (42 d), was selected from each replicate and blood samples were taken from the wing vein in syringes without anticoagulant, and after centrifugation, the sera were collected in 0.5 ml microtubes and kept at -20°C until the further analysis. To evaluate the humoral immune response, 0.1 ml sheep red blood cells (SRBC) suspension was injected to breast muscle of one bird from each replicate on 28 and 35 d and total antibody, IgG and IgM were measured.  Adding saccharin to the diet caused a significant increase in feed intake during the periods of 1-10 and 1-42 days (P < 0.05). The interaction effect of saccharin and Ferula on feed intake was significant (P < 0.05) during the periods of 25-42 and 1-42 days; so the addition of Ferula to diets containing saccharin increased feed intake while in diets without saccharin, it reduced feed intake. The body weight gain of chicks at the age of 1-10, 42-25 and 1-42 days in the treatment with 0.15% saccharin was significantly (P < 0.05) higher than the treatment without saccharin; but adding Ferula had no significant effect on the weight gain. Addition of Ferula and saccharin to the diet and their interaction had no significant effect on the carcass traits of broilers. Adding saccharin to the diet caused a significant increase (P < 0.05) in blood uric acid, but it did not have a significant effect on the concentration of other blood metabolites. An independent comparison of Ferula supplemented diets with treatment without it, showed that Ferula caused a significant (P < 0.05) increase in blood uric acid, albumin and phosphorus and a significant decrease in blood cholesterol and triglyceride. The titer of total antibody and IgG at the age of 35 days, as well as IgG and IgM at the age of 42 days, increased compared to its 0 level under the influence of Ferula consumption. In general, the results showed that the use of sodium saccharin in the diet prevents the reduction of feed intake caused by the bitter taste of Ferula, and the consumption of Ferula improves the immune system and reduces the concentration of cholesterol and triglycerides in the blood broiler chicks.

Heat stress (HS) affects physiological, biochemical and production functions in livestock. By suppressing various components of the immune system, HS increases the susceptibility of livestock to various diseases. This tension has a negative effect on the health and production ability of livestock by disrupting the nervous-hormonal system and suppressing the immune system. The use of different nutritional solutions to improve the immune system of livestock in different stages of production has attracted a lot of attention. This research was conducted to evaluate the effects of glutamine supplementation and protein level on inflammatory indicators, immune system and blood parameters of pregnant Zel breed ewes during the transitional period and the immune response of their lambs during HS.

20 pregnant ewes with an average weight of 42±1 kg and an age of 2.5±1 years and multiparous were selected and randomly assigned to four experimental treatments. Experimental treatments included: 1) basal diet (equal metabolizable protein requirement) 2) basal diet with glutamine (1% diet) 3) diet with 10% more protein than requirement and 4) basal diet with 10% more protein with glutamine.  Blood sampling was done weekly before morning feeding from all ewes using vacuum tubes containing heparin (Venojet) from the jugular vein. Blood parameters including albumin, total plasma protein, alkaline phosphatase and malondialdehyde were measured with relevant kits and with an automatic analyzer. Insulin, immunoglobulin G (IgG), interleukin 2 (IL-2), interleukin 6 (IL-6) and interleukin 10 (IL-10) were measured using ELISA kits. In order to evaluate the immune response and the state of general inflammation, the differential blood count profile was examined.

One week before and after parturition and on the day of parturition, the amount of albumin, total protein, insulin and IgG increased with glutamine consumption (P<0.05).  Also, glutamine supplementation increased the concentration of IgG in lambs born from ewes (P<0.0001).The effect of experimental treatments on alkaline phosphatase was not significant. Also, the consumption of glutamine supplement one week before parturition, one week after parturition and on the day of parturition decreased the concentration of malondialdehyde (P=0.0030, P=0.0057 and P=0.0301, respectively). The number of white blood cells in one week before parturition and on the day of parturition increased significantly with the addition of glutamine (P=0.0015 and P=0.0024, respectively). Glutamine supplementation significantly reduced blood neutrophils (P<0.05). However, blood lymphocyte was significantly increased (P<0.05). On the day of parturition and one week after parturition, treatments increased the values ​​of IL-2 (P=0.0216 and P=0.0586, respectively) and IL-10 (P=0.0573 and P=0.0019, respectively). While the amount of IL-6 on the day of parturition and one week after parturition was significantly reduced by consuming glutamine and adding the level of metabolizable protein (P=0.0079 and P=0.0027, respectively).

The results of this experiment showed that glutamine supplementation improves the health status of pregnant ewes under HS and their lambs.

Heat stress (HS) potentially has several physiological complications that lead to great economic losses in the sheep and goat breeding industry, including reproductive disorders, immune system weakness, inflammation, electrolyte imbalance and reduced feed intake. Glutamine is the most abundant amino acid in the body and this amino acid has different roles such as building proteins, increasing nitrogen balance, stimulating the immune system, anabolic and anti-catabolic effects on muscles, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant. This experiment was conducted to evaluate the effects of glutamine supplementation and protein level (equal to and 10% higher than National Research Council requirement) on blood parameters, inflammatory and immune indices of fattening lambs during heat stress.

In this study, 16 Afshari male lambs with an average weight of 31.5 ± 0.22 kg and an average age of 3 to 4 months were used. Experimental lambs were tested in 4 treatments and 4 repetitions in a completely randomized design for 45 days. Experimental treatments include: 1- basic diet (metabolizable protein equal to requirements), 2- basic diet with glutamine (0.2 grams per kilogram of body weight), 3- diet with 10% more metabolizable protein than reqirements and 4- The diet had 10% higher metabolizable protein with glutamine (0.2 grams per kilogram of body weight). Blood sampling was done from the jugular vein two hours after the morning meal on the 15th, 30th and 45th days of fattening with the help of Venoject tubes containing anticoagulant. Blood parameters including albumin (Alb) and total protein of plasma, alkaline phosphatase and malondialdehyde were measured with relevant kits and with an automatic analyzer. The concentration of cytokines was including interleukin 2, interleukin 6 and interleukin 10 as well as Immunoglobulin G was measured using ELISA kits.

The effects of the treatments on blood Alb on the 15th day of fattening did not show any significant difference. While on days 30 and 45 of fattening, the effects of treatments on blood Alb were significant (P=0.0217 and P=0.0087, respectively). Glutamine increased total plasma protein concentration on days 30 and 45 (P=0.0071 and P=0.0019, respectively). Also, increasing the protein level in the diet of fattening lambs on days 30 and 45 increased TP of plasma (P=0.0139 and P=0.0386, respectively). On the 45th day of fattening, addition of glutamine increased blood ALP enzyme (P=0.0123). Also, taking glutamine supplement on the 30th and 45th days of fattening decreased MDA (P=0.0012 and P=0.0029, respectively). There was no significant difference in the number of red blood cells, hemoglobin level, hematocrit, mean concentration of hemoglobin in cells and mean cell volume between treatments on the 15th and 30th days of fattening. While on day 45, glutamine decreased the number of red blood cells and hematocrit percentage (P=0.0036 and P=0.0081, respectively). The number of white blood cells increased on the 30th and 45th days of fattening with the addition of glutamine (P=0.0004 and P=0.0012, respectively). The effect of treatments on blood IgG, IL-2 and IL-10 on the 15th day of fattening was not significant, while the treatments on the 30th and 45th day of fattening increased the values of IgG (P=0.0287 and P<0.0001, respectively). In addition, IL-2 increased on days 30 and 45 under the influence of treatments (P<0.0001 and P<0.0001, respectively). On the 30th and 45th days of fattening, addition of glutamine increased the levels of IL-10 (P=0.0194 and P=0.0007, respectively). The concentration of IL-6 on the 45th day of fattening decreased with the addition of glutamine and the addition of metabolizable protein level (P=0.0004 and P=0.0233, respectively).

In the conditions of this experiment, the basic diet with glutamine showed better results than other diets.

One of the most important factors in the profitability of dairy farms is effective management methods in keeping and feeding infant calves. Several factors such as underdeveloped immune system and environmental stress can increase the survival power of the animal. Researchers suggest different factors can to improve the immune system of neonatal calves, including the use of fat-soluble vitamins and unsaturated fatty acids. While these vitamins play a major role in the immune system of animals, the supply of fat-soluble vitamins in the calf's diet is essential for promotion the normal growth of muscles and the skeleton of the body. Common symptoms of a deficiency in fat-soluble vitamins in neonatal calves include retardation of growth, and susceptibility to infectious diseases.

This experiment was performed in the farm of Ferdowsi University of Mashhad. Twenty-eight Holstein female calves with an average bodyweight of 37.74 kg (± 4.76) were used from birth to 56 days of age. On the fourth day, the calves were randomly assigned to one of four treatments.  All calves received colostrum for the first 3 d and then whole milk at 8% of bodyweight in the two-equal part in the morning (4.00 A.M) and evening (16 P.M) until weaning. The experimental treatments included: 1) whole milk with starter (Control), 2) control diet supplemented with flax seed oil (0.3 ml per kilogram of body weight), 3) control diet and weekly injection of 7 cc of fat-soluble vitamins (A, D3, E), 4) control diet which supplemented with flaxseed oil (0.3 ml per kilogram of body weight) plus weekly injection of 7 cc of fat-soluble vitamins (A, D3, E). Flax seed oil was mixed into milk (morning feeding) until weaning. During the experiment period, calves had ad libitum access to starter diet and water. Blood sample were harvested from jugular vein for collection of full blood for Complete Blood Count (CBC) test and blood serum metabolites. Serum was stored in -20 centigrade until further analysis. Complete blood count (CBC) test was performed to determine the number of blood cells white blood cells, red blood cells, lymphocytes, monocytes, eosinophils, granulocytes, hemoglobin and hematocrit. Serum blood metabolites, total protein, creatinine, beta-hydroxybutyric acid, albumin, liver enzymes (alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase and alkaline phosphatase), antioxidant capacity (malondialdehyde and total antioxidant capacity) were analyzed using Alpha Classic autoanalyzer. Data were analyzed using SAS version 9.4 as a completely randomized design experiment. For all results, significant differences between treatments were declared at P≤ 0.05 and tendencies were declared at 0.05 < P≤ 0.10. Least square means for each treatment are reported in the tables and were separated using Tukey-kramer test.

The results of this study showed that the use of flaxseed oil and injection of fat-soluble vitamins during preweaning had no significant effect on the Serum concentrations of total protein, creatinine, beta-hydroxybutyric acid, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, malondialdehyde, total antioxidant capacity and had no significant effect on the starter feed intake, daily weight gain, rectal temperature of calves. Calves received flax seed oil and fat-soluble vitamins injection had the highest Red blood cells, White blood cells, Hematocrit, Lymphocytes, Monocytes, Eosinophils and hemoglobin concentration. Claves received flaxseed oil and fat-soluble vitamins injection have the highest serum cholesterol concentration (P<0.00).

The results of this study indicated that inclusion of flaxseed oil and injection of fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E) had no significant effect on blood serum parameters such as total protein, creatinine, albumin, beta-hydroxybutyric acid, malondialdehyde and total antioxidant capacity, but partially improved the immune system (white blood cells, monocytes, eosinophils) and reduces liver enzymes such as aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase, which indicates an increase in animal health.

Ziziphora one of aromatic and medicinal plants that have a wide distribution in Iran. This study was to investigate the effects of supplemented different levels of Ziziphora tenuior to diet on digestibility, hematological, serum biochemical indices, fecal bacteria and nematode population of Dalagh ewes.

Twelve matured Dalagh ewes averagely weighting (40 ±0.5 kg) were assigned to a completely randomized design experiment with 3 treatments: 1) basal diet without additive (control), 2) basal diet +25g Z. tenuior, and 3) basal diet +50g Z. tenuior per day for each animal. The whole period of the experiment was carried out in 44 days, consisting of 14 days for the adaptation period. Digestibility of dry matter and organic matter were calculated using Acid Insoluble Ash (AIA) method, fresh feces were taken by rectal sampling three times every day from each ewe.  In the last day of experiment, fecal samples from each animal were taken by latex gloves from the rectum then were transferred to sterile containers. The samples were directly transported on ice to the microbiology laboratory. The microbial population was assessed by microbial culture method and the number of parasite eggs in feces was conducted by corrected McMaster method. Blood samples were collected from each animal after 16 hours' starvation period, before the morning feed, at the end of the experimental period.

Addition of Z. tenuior did not significantly affect the dry matter (DM) and organic matter (OM) digestibility, serum biochemical indices and fecal bacteria. Different levels of Z. tenuior had no significant effects on glucose, cholesterol, Urea, HDL, LDL. But 25 grams Ziziphora treatment had the biggest decline in VlDL and triglyceride (P<0.05). It was found that treatment 50g Z. tenuior significantly increased the percentage of lymphocytes (P=0.007) and reduced the percentage of Neutrophils (P=0.048) compared to other treatments while the differences between other hematological parameters were not significant.

According to the results mentioned, this experiment indicates that supplementation of ewe diet with Z. tenuior could beneficially affect the fecal bacteria and immune status.

Introduction and Objetive: 

Numerous plant bioactive substances have been shown to improve growth performance, antioxidant status and animal immune systems.Artichoke and onion are a rich source of natural antioxidants and  flavonoids  that have antimicrobial and antioxidant properties.

520 one-day-old commercial 308 chicks were randomly assigned to five treatments and four replications (26 chicks per replication) from 1 to 42 days of age. Experimental treatments included basal diet and basal diet plus 1.5% artichoke, 3% artichoke, 1.5% onion and 3% onion. Dried artichokes and freshly and peeled white onions,after grinding and mixing with corn, soybean meal and other ingredients were used. The effects of different levels of onion and artichoke plant on growth performance, gastrointestinal morphology and immune system of broiler chickens was investigated.

Malondialdehyde, DPPH and SOD were significantly affected by experimental treatments (p<0.05). So that the amount of malondialdehyde significantly decreased in treatments containing onions compared to the control treatment (p<0.05). Also, the percentage of DPPH in experimental treatments, especially in diets containing 3% artichoke and containing onion, increased significantly compared to the basal diet (p<0.05). Addition of artichoke and onion to the diet increased the antibody titer against influenza at 35 days (p<0.05). With the addition of artichoke and onion to the diet, the height of the villi increased and the depth of the crypts decreased significantly (p<0.05). Throughout the experiment, chickens fed onions (one and a half and three percent) showed higher weight gain (p<0.05). Experimental treatments had no significant effect on the percentage of breast, thigh and carcass weight of broilers. Adding artichokes and onions to the diet improved antioxidant status, anti-influenza antibody titers, and improved the height of the jejunal villi relative to the control.The best level was 1.5% dried artichoke or 3% fresh onion.

Flavonoid compounds are one of the compounds that will be commercially available in the future. Due to the improvement of antioxidant status indices of treatments containing artichoke and onion, it is recommended that onion and artichoke flavonoids  and other bioactive substances be extracted and the effects of using this substances purely in broiler diets be investigated.

Flax seed meal (FSM) is rich in various nutrients, especially CP and energy, and can be used as animal protein feed. Flax seed meal is a by-product of flax seed oil extraction. It has approximately 13.3 MJ DE/kg DM and 32% to 37% CP. It has a balanced amino acid profile and relatively low-rumen effective degradable protein. Additionally, it has been reported that FSM has greater content of phenolics and flavonoids than that in its seed. Moreover, it exhibits high antioxidant activity, which is beneficial for the growth and health of animals. These qualities are desirable in feedstuffs for ruminants. However, studies on the effects of replacing SBM with FSM in fattening ewes are limited. The aim of this experiment was to study the effects of replacing a portion of cottonseed meal with flax meal) Linum usitatissimum( on blood parameters, rumen fibrolytic enzyme activity metabolites, the immune system and growth performance in ewes.

The experimental design was a replicated 4 × 4 Latin square with the following treatments: (1) 0% flax meal, (2) 33% flax meal, (3) 66% flax meal and (4) 100% flax meal. The ewes were fed in individual pens for periods of 21 days, with the first 14 days for adaptation to diets and daily meal two hours of 08:00 am and 04:00pm were administered orally. The measurement of blood parameters (Glucose, triglyceride, Blood urea nitrogen, Cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, VLDL- cholesterol) and immune system (Leucocytus, Lymphocytes,   Monocytes, Granulocyte, Red blood cells , Hemoglobin, Hematocrit, The average volume of hemoglobin, The average weight of hemoglobin, The average concentration of hemoglobin in the cell, Red cell scattering amplitude, Platelets, The average size of platelets, The volume of platelets) at the end at the end of the 21-day period. To measure ruminal parameters (pH, ammonia nitrogen and micro-crystalline cellulose and carboxy-methyl cellulose) at the end of each sampling period was 20 days.

The results show that increasing the amount of blood urea nitrogen, cholesterol and HDL- cholesterol and LDL- cholesterol reduced. The immune system parts value hemoglobin and mean hemoglobin concentration have difference significant in treatment and the most amount was of 100% cotton meal treatment. Micro-crystalline cellulose enzyme activity to every three enzymatic activity (intracellular, extracellular and attached to particles) declined.

Overall, the results indicated that cottonseed meal can be effectively replaced by flax meal in the diets of ewes and the optimal proportion was 100% under the conditions of this experiment and without health impact.

The ideal performance of poultry is achieved by adequately feeding of birds while reducing dietary costs and nutrients excretion. On the other hand, the amount of dietary nutrients can have a significant effect on feed intake (Kidd et al., 2002). Studies have shown that reduced growth and yield due to decreased dietary protein can be compensated by supplementing the synthetic amino acids (Hussein et al., 2001). Diets based on total and digestible amino acids can improve the performance (Rostagno et al, 1995). Some properties of valine and tryptophan in relation to non-protein function and metabolism distinguish them from other amino acids. Valine is the fourth limited amino acid to the growth of broilers. Tryptophan involved in all proteins structure and is a precursor for serotonin and melatonin, which in addition to improving food intake (Silber and Schmitt, 2010). Valine affects the ghrelin and neuropeptide Y production (Coto et al, 2006) while tryptophan affects the serotonin secretion (Henry, 1985) that both affects the feed intake. The functions of the two amino acids can improve the performance and immune system of birds.

The current experiment was performed to evaluate the effects of different levels of valine and tryptophan amino acids in low-protein diets on carcass characteristics and immune response of broiler chickens. A total of 450 day-old Ross 308 broiler chickens were randomly divided into nine treatment groups. The chickens were arranged in a 3×3 factorial experiment based a completely randomized design including 3 levels of valine and three levels tryptophan. Each treatment considered of five replicates and 10 chickens per experimental unit. The birds were reared on the litter pen for 21 days with ad-libitum access to feed and water. Diets were formulated based on linear programming by using of the UFFDA software. Experimental treatments were adjusted based on Brazilian tables and included: 1- recommended level of valine + recommended level of tryptophan, 2- recommended level of valine + 5% more than recommended tryptophan, 3-recommended valine level + 10% more than recommended tryptophan, 4-10% more than recommended valine level + recommended level of tryptophan, 5-10% more than recommended valine + 5% more than recommended tryptophan, 6- 10% more than recommended tryptophan level + 10% more than recommended tryptophan, 7- 20% more than recommended valine level + recommended level of tryptophan, 8- 20% more than recommended valine + 5% more than recommended tryptophan, 9-20% more than recommended valine level+ 10% more than recommended tryptophan. On day 21 of experiment, two birds per pen were randomly selected and slaughtered for whole carcass analysis after 12 hours of fasting. After slaughter, the organs such as breast, thigh, abdominal fat, gizzard, liver, heart, spleen, thymus and burs fabricius were weighed. In order to determination of white blood cells, blood sampling drawn from the wing vein at 21 days of age and the number of lymphocytes, heterophils, monocytes, basophils and eosinophils were determined. Blood samples were taken at 21 days of age as well to determination of the antibody titer of Newcastle virus. To measure the immune response to sheep erythrocytes, 2 ml of blood was taken from the chicken vein on 14 and 21 days of the experiment and used to determination of total immunoglobulin and IgM and IgG titers. The antibody titers were performed by direct hemagglutination (Isaco et al. 2005). The CBH test was used to evaluate the cellular immunity. The experiment was conducted using completely randomized design with factorial structure. Data were subjected to ANOVA using the GLM procedure (SAS, version 9.1) as a 3×3 factorial. Significant means among the variables were separated by Duncan's multiple range tests at 5% level of significance.

The results of current experiment showed that the addition of valine and tryptophan in low protein diets had no significant effect on carcass yield, thigh, gizzard, heart and abdominal fat (p<0.05). The consumption of 20% and 10% levels of valine significantly increased the breast weight as compared to the recommended level (p<0.05). No interaction effects was observed between the valine and tryptophan amino acids for the weights of carcass parts and internal organs (p>0.05). In a study, consumption of 10 and 20% tryptophan levels had no significant effect on breast and thigh of broilers at 22 days of age (Duarte et al, 2013). Moreover, addition of valine to poultry diets did not have a significant effect on abdominal fat weight (Corzo et al, 2004). Different levels of valine and tryptophan had no affected the liver and spleen weight (p<0.05). Furthermore, addition of 20% valine caused an increase in thymus and bursa weights (p<0.05). The diets containing tryptophan had a significant effect on the number of blood lymphocytes, so that the addition of 10% tryptophan increased the blood lymphocytes (p<0.05). Valine and tryptophan addition did not affected the other blood leukocytes (p<0.05). Addition of 20% valine increased the humoral immunity (HI antibody titer) (p<0.05). Also, addition of 10% tryptophan level increased the immunity of chickens against HI antibody (p<0.05). The results showed that the initial response of total antibody was not affected by experimental treatments (p<0.05) but 10% level of valine significantly increased the IgM (p<0.05). Dietary addition of 20% valine had a significant effect on IgM secondary response SRBC (p<0.05) but had no significant effect on the PHA-P injection response (p<0.05). It has been reported that protein deficiency have caused the unsuitable growth of lymphoid organs (Corzo et al., 2007).

The result of current experiment showed that consumption of high valine and tryptophan levels in low-protein diets improved the carcass characteristics and immune system of broilers.

As the highest cost of poultry production is the cost of feed, optimizing feed consumption and reducing feed conversion ratio are very important in the poultry industry. Also, the problem of lower egg shell quality caused by prolonged egg production period is an important issue affecting the breeding of old layer hens. Approximately 10% of the eggs produced in poultry farms are lost due to breakage of eggshells, which accounts for huge economic loss to the egg industry. Improving eggshell quality are essential for protection against penetrating of pathogenic bacteria. As a result, a great deal of efforts have been applied to improving egg shell quality in old laying hens in the fields of mineral nutrition. Numerous researchers have focused on the addition of trace elements in the diet to regulate egg quality by improving eggshell ultrastructure. Manganese is an indispensable trace element, Manganese takes a crucial part in biological processes, including the metabolism of lipid, protein, and carbohydrate. The low Mn content in corn–soybean meal diets used in production and the inefficient intestinal absorption of Mn in birds calls for the need for optimizing the supplemental provision of Mn to birds. In the process of egg formation, manganese is important for the formation of the shell and the pleasure affects the quality of the shell. Manganese is an important nutrient for laying hens. Dietary Mn is known to have profound effects on the skeleton. Manganese supplementation affects the function and characteristics of the tibia.

An experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of two inorganic and organic forms of manganese on performance, antioxidant activities, immune system and bone strength in older laying hens. 250 Leghorn laying hens (w-36) with 80 weeks of age were divided into 5 treatments and 5 replications in a completely randomized design. Treatments were: control (without manganese supplement), treatments containing 100% manganese sulfate (diet 1), 75% manganese sulfate and 25% organic manganese chelated (diet 2), 50% manganese sulfate and 50% organic chelated (diet 3) 25% sulfate Manganese and 75% organic chelated (diet 4). During the experiment, daily feed intake (g), egg weight, number and production of eggs (g/hen/day) and feed conversion ratio were calculated. To evaluate the humoral immunity on the day of slaughter (94 weeks age), 10 cc of blood was taken from two selected birds and its immunoglobulins were measured. To evaluate the bone strength, two pieces of chicken were selected from each replication and after slaughter, the tibia of the right foot was isolated and after preparation, the mechanical properties of the bones were measured. Also The antioxidant activities of SOD (Superoxide dismutase), DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) and MDA (malondialdehyde) were evaluated.

The results obtained in this experiment showed that the production performance was affected by experimental treatments. The lowest feed conversion ratio and the highest feed intake, egg production, egg weight and egg mass were observed in diets 4 and5, i.e. treatments receiving 50% and 75% manganese organic chelate. Also, the levels of immunoglobulin G and immunoglobulin M were significantly affected by experimental treatments. The levels of immunoglobulin G and immunoglobulin M in the experimental treatments showed a significant increase compared to the control treatment, while in immunoglobulin M there was no statistically significant difference between diet 3 and basal diet. In addition, antioxidant activity was significantly affected by experimental treatments. The amount of malondialdehyde was significantly reduced in diet treatments 4 and 5 compared to the control treatment. The percentage of DPPH (2,2-dipheny l-1-picrylhydrazyl) in diets 3, 4 and 5 showed a significant increase compared to the basal diet. Also, the amount of superoxide dismutase in diet 2 showed a significant decrease compared to other diets and control diet. However, the effects of inorganic and organic manganese supplements on the tibia strength of older laying hens were not affected by experimental treatments.

The results of this experiment showed that the addition of manganese supplement to the diet improves the production performance and immunoglobulin G and immunoglobulin M through the use of organic manganese source in laying hens and manganese amino acid chelate can replace 75% of manganese sulfate in the diet of older laying hens. Also, antioxidant status was significantly affected by experimental treatments. In general, the addition of manganese supplement in the diet of laying hens improves performance, immune system and antioxidant activity in aged laying hens.

Several studies have been performed in order to improve feed utilization and reduce the feed costs. For this purpose, various additives have been used to improve the health and production performance of poultry. Barley malt extract is one of the additives that has recently been introduced for using in domestic animal feeds. Barley malt extract is produced from barley grains through a process called the malting. Malting is the process of cereal grains germination that have been dried. The germination starts by soaking barley grains in water. The malting process make changes in barley, which involves the alteration and degradation of phenolic compounds and the production of Maillard reaction products, which have a significant effect on the antioxidant content of malt. Malt is known as a natural source of antioxidants, B vitamins and minerals such as iron, zinc, calcium, magnesium and phosphorus. Malt extract is available in both powder and liquid forms, the liquid form of that is thick syrup and has been used extensively for several applications, such as brewing, baking, food flavoring or as an appetizer. The results of previous study showed that adding malt extract to the broiler diet can improve performance of broiler as well as villus width and villi surface area. However, based on our literature review there is no data available to evaluate the effect of adding barley malt extract on the performance of laying hens. Therefore, the aim of this study is to evaluate the effects of adding different levels of barley malt extract to the diet on performance, egg quality, immune response and intestinal morphology of laying hens during 29 to 46 weeks of age.

In this study, 432 Hyline W36 laying hens were used in a completely randomized design with three treatments and six replicates of 24 birds each, for 18 weeks. The experimental treatments included 0, 0.2 and 0.4% barley malt extract levels. Feed intake, feed conversion ratio, egg production, egg mass, egg weight, shell thickness and strength, shell weight and internal quality characteristics of eggs were evaluated during the experiment. In addition, antibody titers against sheep red blood cells (SRBC), Newcastle and influenza viruses were measured two times at specific intervals after the respective vaccinations. At the end of the experimental period after slaughter, 2-cm segment was separated from the jejunal region anterior to Meckel’s diverticulum. Tissue samples were evaluated for the villus height, villus width, crypt depth, villus height:crypt depth ratio (VH:CD), villus surface area, muscular layer and epithelial layer.

The results showed that although percentage of egg production, egg weight and egg mass were not affected by the experimental treatments, but adding malt extract numerically showed better egg production persistency at the end of experimental period. Also feed conversion ratio and feed intake in the laying hens at 28 to 46 weeks of age (peak production and post-peak) were not affected by the experimental treatments. Egg shell thickness (P<0.001), haugh unit(HU) index and yolk height (P<0.01) were affected by experimental treatments, briefly treatments supplemented with malt extract showed higher egg quality for mentioned criteria as compared to the control group. Furthermore the treatments supplemented with barley malt extract numerically increased eggshell strength (P=0.076). Total antibody concentration against SRBC and Immunoglobulin G (IgG) increased in the treatments supplemented with 0.2 and 0.4% barley malt extract during the primary period (p < 0.05). Antibody productions were not affected against the Newcastle viruses. In the first period of the experimental treatment antibody production were affected against influenza viruses; briefly, the highest antibody production was related to those birds that fed with the control diet. In addition, the results show that supplementation of barley malt extract in the diet can increase the villi height, villi height to crypt depth ratio and villi surface area. Villus width, crypt depth and muscular and epithelial layer were not influenced by adding barley malt extract to the laying hen diet. 

The results of this study showed that adding barley malt extract to the diet of laying hen may improve egg quality and antibodies production against SRBC. Furthermore, barley malt extract may increase the villus height, villus height: crypt depth ratio and villi surface area, and consequently improve the digestive capacity of laying hens.

This study was designed to evaluate the effect of organic acid (Biotronic) and silver nanoparticles coated on zeolite on performance and humoral immune response of broiler chickens under heat stress conditions using a total of 375 one day-old broiler chicks (Cobb 500). Chicks were allocated to five treatments, five replicates and 15 chicks per each replicate using a completely randomized design. Treatments included: (1) control (2) 1% Uncoated zeolite, (3) zeolite-coated with 0.5% silver nanoparticles, (4) 1 g/kg organic acids and (5) zeolite-coated with 0.5% of silver nanoparticles and 1g/kg organic acids. Heat stress was exposed at 34˚ C in sixth week. Chicken’s performance indices were measured periodically. Blood samples were taken to determine antibody response, sheep red blood cells (SRBC) and heterophile to lymphocyte ratio at the end of the third, fourth, fifth and sixth weeks. The results of experiment indicated that diet containing Nano silver with organic acid decreased broiler body weight compared with the control and organic acids treatment at growth period (days 42-21 of breeding) (p<0.05). Also feed conversion ratio was significantly higher in the Nano silver coated on zeolite treatment than control treatment, zeolite and organic acids groups in the whole experimental periods (1-24 days) (p<0.05). However, the results of the experiment showed no significant differences between all treatments on immune system (p>0.05). In conclusion, the use of Nano silver and organic acid at the above levels had no effect on immune system, but the diet of silver nanoparticles increased the feed conversion ratio in chickens.

The effect of garden thyme essential oil (TEO) and rapeseed oil (RO) on performance, immune traits and intestinal morphology using 432 one-dayoldRoss 308 male broiler as a (3x3) factorial experiment in a completely randomized design including different levels of TEO (0, 300 and 500 ppm)and RO (1, 3 and 5 percentage) were evaluated with 9 treatments and 4 replicates. Throughout the rearing period, broiler chickens receiving 3%gained more weight than 1% of RO and chickens receiving 300 ppm gained more weight than those without TEO (P˂0.05). The use of 3% RO + 300ppm TEO increased the thigh percentage compared to 1% RO. At 1 and 5 percentage levels of RO, with increasing levels of TEO in the diet, bloodcholesterol and LDL concentrations decreased and blood HDL increased (P<0.01). Levels of 3% and 5% of RO + 300 and 500 ppm of TEO in broilerchicken diets increased lymphocyte percentage and antibody titer against Newcastle disease and decreased heterophil percentage and heterophil tolymphocyte ratio of blood (P<0.05). Broiler chickens receiving diet containing TEO had the highest ratio of villi height to crypt depth (P<0.01). Basedon the results, the level of 3% rapeseed oil + 300 ppm thyme essential oil in the diet of broiler chickens can be used to improve performance,immunity and biochemical traits of blood.

Bovine viral leukemia (BLV) is one of the deadliest viral diseases that is associated with many economic losses in the dairy industry, such as reduced production capacity and reproductive performance of infected animals and their eventual culling. The aim of this study was to identify the selection signatures associated with resistance to BLV in Iranian Holstein cows. For this purpose, a total of 152 animals were genotyped for 30,105 SNP markers using GGP Bovine LD v4 chips. After quality control of the initial data, 23,513 SNP markers in 140 animals of cattle were finally entered for further analysis. The animals used were classified into two groups consisting resistant to disease or healthy (68 animals) and sick (77 animals) animals, and then the regions of the genome that were divergently selected in these animals were evaluated using the unbiased Theta method. The results of this study showed that four genomic regions on chromosomes 1, 13, 20 and 22 were divergently selected in these groups. Study of the genes reported in these regions revealed that some genes such as the STGA1 on chromosome 1, the STK35, EBF4, and PDYN on chromosome 13 and the SLC38A3, RASSF1, and RBM6 on chromosome 22 were previously reported within or adjacent to these genomic regions. Study the function of these genes showed that the genes are involved in the immune system, the regulation of mitotic and meiotic cycles and cancer suppression. Overall, the results of this study can provide a valuable source of information to identify candidate genomic regions or causal genes associated with this disease.

The use of growth promoters and the strengthening of the immune system has been one of the concerns of livestock nutritionists. At first, using antibiotics was the best solution. But worries about their effects on livestock products have prompted scientists to find suitable alternatives. Probiotics as a natural product, along with some vitamins, were a good option. This study was conducted to investigate the effects of probiotic and vitamin E+ selenium supplements on performance and some blood and ruminal parameters of Holstein calves.

Twenty-four Holstein male calves were randomly assigned to 4 treatments after weightlifting and prenatal follow-up. The calves were transferred to individual cages and fed a sufficient amount of colostrum for the first 3 days. Treatments included: 1- basal diet (starter diet + milk), 2- basal diet with Bioguil probiotic (2 g), 3- basal diet with injectable supplement of vitamin E+ selenium (0.14 ml per kg live weight), and 4- basal diet with probiotic and vitmin E + selenium. Probiotics were given daily and vitamin E+ selenium at birth and 14 days of age. The calves were fed milk twice a day. The starter was also given to them from the beginning of the second week of the experiment. The calves were weighed at the beginning of the experiment as well as once every two weeks. The amount of feed intake was calculated daily. Skeletal growth indices including body length, withers height, hip height, hip width, and heart girth were measured and recorded on the days of entering the experiment, 14, 28, 42, and 56. At 7, 21, 42 and 56 days old, blood sampling was done four hours after morning feeding by venoject tubes via jugular vein. Blood metabolites including glucose, albumin, total protein, beta hydroxyl butyric acid, cholesterol, triglyceride, urea and immunoglobulin G (IgG) were measured. The rumen fluid was collected using an esophageal catheter on days 21, 42, and 60 days to measure ammoniacal nitrogen and determine the fatty acids profile. The data were analyzed using SAS software according to MIXED procedure.

Probiotic and Vitamin E + selenium did not have any significant effect on weight gain and feed intake of calves (P >0.05). However, in calves receiving probiotic and probiotic combination with vitamin E + selenium, despite the lower initial weight, total and daily weight gain was numerically higher than control and those recipient vitamin E + selenium. The amount of feed conversion ratio (FCR) in the probiotic treatment showed a tendency to improve compared to the control (P = 0.09). Except for total protein (P= 0.002) and IgG (P=0.0004), the other blood parameters were not affected by treatments (P>0.05). Probiotic, vitamin E+ selenium and their combination reduced blood protein level compared to control. In contrast, these treatments increased IgG level. Treatments had no any effect on volatile fatty acid concentration (P>0.05). However, the use of probiotics and vitamin E + selenium increased the amount of acetate and propionate numerically. The amount of ammoniacal nitrogen and pH were not affected by the treatments (P>0.05).

Probiotic treatment improved feed conversion ratio (FCR) and increased some skeletal growth indices in dairy calves. The use of probiotics, vitamin E + selenium and their combination increased the absorption of IgG, which can lead to calf resistance to infectious diseases such as diarrhea.