The objectives of this trial were to evaluate the efficacy of oregan extract (OE), as growth promoter, in the diets, on performance, immune system (bursa Fabricius weight and volume, spleen weight and thymus weight), anatomic-physiological parameters of the gastrointestinal tract (villy height, crypta depth and villy:crypta ratio), caecum microbiological analysis, and duodenum and caecum pH. One thousand and fourty male Cobb 500 chicks, in two growing phases (1 to 21 and 1 to 42 days old) were randomly assigned to six treatments and eight replicates of 30 broilers. The basal diet (BD) was fed during the three phases (1 to 21, 22 to 35 and 36 to 42 days old), according to the following treatments: T1 - BD, T2 - BD with antibiotic (25 ppm zinc bacitracin), T3 - BD with 0.025% OE, T4 - BD with 0.050% OE, T5 - BD with 0.075% OE, and T6 - BD with 0.100% OE. No effect of treatments on broiler performance and duodenum and caecum pH in both phases was observed. The immunity system and anatomic-physiological parameters of gastrointestinal tract were not affected by the treatments, during the first phase. At 42 days old, only the spleen weight and villy height were affected by treatments. Decreasing effect on the number of bacteriums in caecum as the dietary level of oregan extract increased showed the antimicrobian effect of oregan extract. Based on these results, it is possible to conclude that the use of oregan extract as growth promoter did not differ from the other treatments (antibiotic and control).
additive; broiler; growth promoter; oregan extract
