Evaluating the Competitiveness of Medicinal Plants With Antibiotics to Control Salmonella Enterica Serovar Typhimurium in Broiler Chickens

Background: Salmonellosis is one of the important diseases in the poultry industry, which also causes public health concerns. Objectives: We studied the effects of enrofloxacin and herbal medicines on growth performance, blood parameters, meat oxidation, and cecal microbial population in broilers challenged with Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium (ST). Methods: A total of 240 one-day-old (male) Ross 308 broiler chicks were randomly divided into 6 groups: negative and positive control, enrofloxacin, and three herbal medicines (A, B, and C) containing different proportions of cinnamon, thyme, licorice, and marjoram extracts with compounds of organic acids. The dosage of enrofloxacin and A, B, and C herbal medicines were 1, 1, 1, and 2 mL/L in drinking water, respectively, prescribed from days 16 to 21. On day 10, all groups except negative control were challenged with 1 mL suspension containing 1×107 CFU/mL ST. Performance traits were measured in intervals of 1-10, 11-24, 25-42, and 1-42 days. Blood parameters, meat oxidation, and cecal microbial population were measured on day 21. Results: Among the challenged groups, medicine C and enrofloxacin showed the lowest levels of Salmonella infection (P<0.05). Medicine B had a better effect on performance traits (P<0.05). Medicine A had the lowest amount of malondialdehyde in meat. Medicines A and B caused the lowest cholesterol and triglyceride concentration in serum (P<0.05). Conclusion: The above-mentioned herbal medicines can be used as beneficial additives in poultry nutrition to improve growth performance, reduce the Salmonella population in the gastrointestinal tract, and cholesterol, triglycerides, and meat oxidation.