Effects of fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum L.) seed powder and sex on performance, immune response, and intestinal microflora and morphology of broilers

To investigate the effects of sex and fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum L.) seed powder on the growth performance, immune response, and intestinal microflora and morphology of broilers, a factorial experiment was conducted with 240 one-day-old broilers (strain Ross308, 120 males and 120 females) in a completely randomized design with three levels of fenugreek seed powder (zero, 0.5, and 1 %) and two sex (male and female) with four replications and 10 birds per replicate. The results showed that the body weight gain, feed intake, European efficiency factor, and intestinal Lactobacillus bacteria population were higher in the males than the females (P<0.05). The main effects of fenugreek seed powder and sex showed that the length and villi width and villus length to crypt depth ratio were higher in the intestine of chickens fed with the diet containing 1% fenugreek than the control and in the males than the females (P<0.05). The interactions showed that the length and villi width and villus length to crypt depth ratio were lower in the intestines of males fed with the control diet compared to the other groups (P<0.05). The antibody titer against the sheep red blood cells in the serum of chickens fed with the diet containing 1% fenugreek was higher than the control (P<0.05). In general, the results showed that adding 1% fenugreek seed powder to the broilers diet had beneficial effects and could improve the intestinal morphology and immune response.