Effect of L-carnitine on the level of biochemical and antioxidant indices of blood of turkey hens

Abstrakt

This study was aimed at determining the effect of L-carnitine addition to drinking water for turkey hens on the level of biochemical and antioxidative indices in their blood. Experiments
were conducted with heavy Big-6 turkey hens reared since the 6^th till the 16^th week of life. Group I included control birds that received pure water for drinking. Turkey hens from group II
received a liquid preparation of L-carnitine to drinking water in a dose of 0.83 ml/ l water, which was administered four times, i.e. in weeks 5, 8, 11 and 14 of life for the period of 5 days. Ate the end of the 9^th and 15^th weeks of birds’ life, blood was sampled for analyses from the brachial vein of 15 birds from each group. Samples of blood plasma were determined for the content of biochemical markers, including: uric acid (UA), urea (UREA), bilirubin (BIL), creatinine (CREAT), albumin (ALBUMIN), iron (Fe), copper (Cu), and zinc (Zn). In terms of antioxidative markers, samples of blood serum were analyzed for the levels of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), ferric-reducing ability of plasma (FRAP), and vitamin C. Further analyses were carried out to determine levels of lipid peroxidation products, i.e.: peroxides (H₂O₂) and malondialdehyde (MDA). The application of L-carnitine addition to drinking water for turkey hens was found to contribute to increased levels of low-molecular antioxidants, i.e. vitamin C, iron, and zinc, and to a reduced level of catalase in their blood plasma. The results obtained point to the feasibility of applying L-carnitine as an additive maintaining the oxidative-antioxidative balance in turkey hens, yet they need to be verified in further studies involving different modes of dosage.