AUTHOR=Li Chenqinyao , Li Xue , Li Piwu , Wei Bin , Zhang Cong , Zhu Xiaoling , Zhang Jie TITLE=Sodium humate alters the intestinal microbiome, short-chain fatty acids, eggshell ultrastructure, and egg performance of old laying hens JOURNAL=Frontiers in Veterinary Science VOLUME=9 YEAR=2022 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/veterinary-science/articles/10.3389/fvets.2022.986562 DOI=10.3389/fvets.2022.986562 ISSN=2297-1769 ABSTRACT=
This study investigated the effect of sodium humate supplementation on changes in the intestinal microbiome, intestinal short-chain fatty acids production, and trace element absorption in older laying hens, with consequent effects on egg performance and shell quality. We used the same hens as their own control; a total of 720 laying hens aged 422 days were randomly divided into three replicates, with the CON group fed a commercial diet at 422–441 days of age and the HANa group fed a commercial diet supplemented with 0.05% sodium humate at 442–461 days of age. Compared with the CON group, in the HANa group, Bacteroidetes and Actinobacteria were significantly increased, whereas, Firmicutes was significantly decreased. Further,