A Bioavailable Nanocomposition of Chitosan–Copper Nanoparticles as an Alternative to Antibiotics in Broiler Feed

Abstract

Pathogens pose a serious threat to agriculture as they cause diseases, reduce the growth rate and efficiency of farm birds and animals and causing economic losses. Therefore, antibiotics continue to be used to combat pathogens and for prevention, despite all their negative effects and the bacterial resistance to them. Effective alternatives are needed that exclude the use of vaccines and drugs. An aggregatively stable nanocomposition of chitosan and nanoparticles of copper with an average size of the latter of 25–30 nm was developed. The bactericidal effect of the nanocomposition was shown in vitro on the pathogenic bacteria Enterococcus faecalis and investigated in vivo in the composition of the drink and feed of the broiler chickens in comparison with the antibiotic “Maxus,” which is used in their diet, on a wide range of pathogenic microorganisms. It was shown that the number of bacteria in broilers was 1.88% when the nanocomposition was administered, which is more than two times less compared to the group in which the antibiotic was used.