Effects of long-term feeding of diets containing moniliformin, supplied by Fusarium fujikuroi culture material, and fumonisin, supplied by Fusarium moniliforme culture material, to laying hens

• Published in: Poultry science 1999-11, Vol.78 (11), p.1499-1505
• Main Authors: Kubena, L.F, Harvey, R.B, Buckley, S.A, Bailey, R.H, Rottinghaus, G.E
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Animal Feed; Animals; Body Weight; Carboxylic Acids - administration & dosage; Chickens - physiology; Culture Media, Conditioned; Cyclobutanes - administration & dosage; Diet; dosage; Drug Synergism; egg production; fecundity; Female; Fertility; Food Contamination; Fumonisins; Fusarium; Fusarium - metabolism; Gibberella fujikuroi; hen feeding; hens; long term experiments; mortality; mycotoxicosis; Mycotoxins - administration & dosage; Oviposition; synergism; toxicity
• ISSN: 0032-5791; 1525-3171
• DOI: 10.1093/ps/78.11.1499

Beginning at 24 wk of age, control diets or diets containing 50 or 100 mg/kg moniliformin (M), 100 or 200 mg/kg fumonisin B(1) (FB(1)), or a combination of 50 mg M and 100 mg FB(1)/kg of diet were fed to White Leghorn laying hens for 420 d. The hens were then fed the control diet for an additional 60 d. At the beginning of the experiment, each treatment consisted of four replicates of six hens. Egg production was reduced by approximately 50% by the end of the second 28-d laying period and remained at approximately this level for the 420 d in only the hens fed the diet containing 100 mg M/kg feed. Production returned to control levels or above within 60 d after hens were fed the control diet. Egg weights were reduced by the 100-mg M diet during the first three 28-d laying periods before returning to weights comparable with controls. The hens in this group also had significantly lower body weights than the other treatments. Mortality was minimal except in hens fed the 100 mg M/kg diet and the 100 mg FB(1)/kg diet, on which approximately 20% of the hens died. The hens were artificially inseminated with semen from males fed control diets, and fertility was not affected by the dietary treatments. Importantly, toxic synergy between M and FB(1) was not observed for any of the parameters measured. Results indicate that laying hens may be able to tolerate relatively high concentrations of M and FB(1) for long periods of time without adversely affecting health and performance. Interestingly, hens fed the 100-mg M/kg diet were able to recover when returned to control diets. The likelihood of encountering M or FB(1) at these concentrations in finished feed is small.