نعمت ضیائی

This study was carried out to determine the influence of red tea (Hibiscus sabdariffa) powder and selenium (Se) on growth performance, intestinal morphology, and some blood constituents in heat-stressed broiler chickens. In this experiment, 240 one-day-old male broiler chickens (Ross 308) with a mean weight of 40±2 g were used in a completely randomized design, as a 2×3 factorial arrangement consisting of three levels of red tea (0, 0.5, and 1.0 g/kg) and two levels of Se (0, 0.4 mg/kg). Broiler chickens received the diets from days 25 to 42 of age. Heat stress was applied from days 25 to 42 of the experiment for eight hours, 09:00 am to 05:00 pm (34±2 °C). On d 42, two birds from each pen were randomly chosen, blood sampled, and slaughtered. Inclusion of red tea powder in the diet increased daily weight gain (DWG) and improved feed conversion ratio (FCR) (P<0.05). The interaction effect of Se and red tea powder on feed intake (FI), DWG, and FCR was significant (P<0.05). Broiler chickens that received a diet containing 1.0 g/kg red tea and no Se had the greatest BWG and the lowest FCR. Maximum FI was observed in broiler chickens that received a diet containing 0.4 mg/kg Se and no red tea powder. The interaction effect of Se and red tea powder improved the intestinal morphology and increased glutathione peroxidase activity in broiler chickens (P<0.05). According to the findings of this research, diet supplementation with 1.0 g/kg of red tea powder and 0.4 mg/kg of Se may improve growth performance, intestinal morphology and increase glutathione peroxidase activity in broilers under heatstress conditions