The Effect of Aflatoxin on Kidney Function in Broiler Chicks

Authors: GÖKHAN ERASLAN, ERDAL KARAÖZ, ALİ BİLGİLİ, MEHMET AKDOĞAN, MERAL ÖNCÜ, DİNÇ EŞSİZ

Abstract: In this study, eighty, day-old female Avion breed, broiler chicks were used. Chicks were separated into five groups, including one control. While the control group (Group I) received normal feed, the experimental groups received feed supplemented with aflatoxin at the rate of 0.05 ppm (Group II), 0.1 ppm (Group III), 0.5 ppm (Group IV), and 1 ppm (Group V) for 45 days. On days 15, 30 and 45 blood was taken from the control and experimental animals in order to perform biochemical analyses and kidney tissue was dissected for histopathological examination. As a result, a number of pathological findings were determined in kidney tissue related to the intake of aflatoxin over 45 days. However, the changes in all biochemical parameters were not statistically significant in most periods, thus showing that aflatoxin provided over the reported period and doses does not affect kidney function sufficiently to destabilize the physiological balance.

Keywords: Aflatoxin, broiler chickens, kidney function

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