Influence of dietary amino acid reductions and Eimeria acervulina infection on growth performance and intestinal cytokine responses of broilers fed low crude protein diets

Two experiments were conducted to evaluate the influence of Eimeria acervulina infection on growth performance, plasma carotenoids, and intestinal cytokine responses of broilers fed low crude protein (LCP) diets with reduced concentrations of selected amino acids (AA). Experiment 1 was conducted to validate a dietary formulation approach in which broilers were fed 1 of 5 diets including a 19.0% CP corn-soybean meal based (CSBM) diet, a LCP control diet (16.7% CP) that matched the AA profile of the CSBM diet, and 3 LCP diets with 30% reductions in standardized ileal digestible concentrations of TSAA, Lys, or Thr from 14 to 23 d post-hatch. Body weight gain and G:F were greatest (P < 0.05) and similar for broilers fed the CSBM and LCP control diets, whereas reductions in Thr, TSAA, and Lys each decreased (P < 0.05) G:F of broilers. In Experiment 2, birds were allotted to 18 treatment groups in a factorial arrangement of 9 dietary treatments × 2 infection states. Dietary treatments included a LCP control diet similar to that fed in Experiment 1 and 8 LCP diets with 40% individual reductions in TSAA, Lys, Thr, Val, Ile, Arg, Phe + Tyr, or Gly + Ser. Broilers received experimental diets from 10 d to 28 d post-hatch and were inoculated with 0 or 4.0 × 10⁵ sporulated E. acervulina oocysts at 15 d. Decreased (P < 0.05) growth performance (10 to 28 d) of broilers was observed with each AA reduction, except Phe + Tyr, compared with birds fed the LCP control diet. Body weight gain and G:F were lowest (P < 0.05) for birds fed diets reduced in Lys or Val. Eimeria acervulina decreased growth performance and plasma carotenoids of broilers, but effects varied among dietary treatment groups as indicated by diet × infection interactions (P < 0.05). Dietary AA reductions did not alter (P > 0.05) the increase in intestinal gene expression of interferon-γ, interleukin-1β, or interleukin-10 observed in E. acervulina-infected birds.