Low doses of exogenous xylanase improve the nutritive value of triticale-based diets for broilers

Triticale, a hybrid of wheat and rye, is a cereal grain that displays a nutritive value similar to wheat and a resistance to hard agronomic conditions, which are more identical to rye. Because of its lower price in comparison with wheat or corn, triticale may be a potential alternative raw material for broiler diets. However, triticale is known to contain a significant proportion of soluble arabinoxylans, which are known to act as antinutritive factors in poultry. Nevertheless, levels of soluble polysaccharides in triticale are more similar to wheat and are not as high as in rye. In the present study, the capacity of xylanases, used at different levels, to improve the nutritive value of a triticale-based diet for broilers was investigated. On the basis of these data, triticale may be used effectively as the main feedstuff in broiler diets. However, supplementation with xylanase improved the nutritive value of the cereal-based diet when incorporated at 75% (wt/wt) of the recommended dose. Xylanases may modulate bird performance through the microflora route. As expected, incorporation of the exogenous enzymes reduced digesta viscosity. However, xylanase incorporation at 100 and 200% of the recommended levels did not have an effect on bird performance.