Response of Finisher Broiler Chickens to Justicia carnea Aqueous Leaf Extract on some Haematological and Serum Biochemical Indices

Abstract

This experiment was conducted at the Teaching and Research Farm of the University of Benin, Benin City, Edo State to evaluate some haematological and serum biochemical indices of (96) 4-weeks old finisher broiler chickens using varied levels of Justicia carnea aqueous leaf extract in a Completely Randomized Designed (CRD) arrangement. At the completion of four week of the broilers’ age, they were randomly assigned to four (4) treatment levels as were adopted in this study with treatment 1 (T1), treatment 2 (T2), treatment 3 (T3) and treatment 4 (T4) receiving 0 mL, 10 mLs, 15 mLs and 20 mLs of the plant extract respectively. Chickens in treatment 1 served as the control without the leaf extract being administered to them. Each treatment was further replicated twice to accommodate twelve (12) broiler chickens each. To prepare the aqueous leaf extract, fresh Justicia carnea leaves 
were harvested, washed, air - dried under shade and blended into paste. One hundred (100) grams (g) of the leaf- paste was then soaked in two (200) milliliters (mLs) of hot water (100°c) and allowed to stay for six hours to ensure maximum extraction of the leaf ingredients. The mixture was then filtered with the use of Watchman's No1 filter paper to obtained the aqueous leaf extract (the filtrate) which was stored in closed containers and preserved in refrigerator at 2°C for administration to the broiler chickens thrice weekly within the last four weeks of this experiment. Feed and water was provided ad libitum all through the period of this study. At the end of the experiment, six (6) of the broiler chickens per treatment giving a total of twenty- four (24) were randomly selected and used for collection of blood samples from the wing veins for both haematological and serum biochemical studies. The parameters measured for the blood assessment were haemaglobin (Hb), packed cell volume (PCV), red blood cells (RBC), white blood cells (WBCs), mean corpuscular haemoglobin (MCH), mean corpuscular volume (MCV), and mean corpuscular haemoglobin concentration (MCHC). Others include neutrophils (NEUT), lymphocytes (LYM), eosinophils (EOS), basophil (BAS) and monocyte (MONO); while biochemical investigation involved total protein (TP), albumen (ALB), globulin (GLOB), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and glucose. Results revealed significant differences (p <0.05) 
on between the treatment means for Hb, PCV, RBC, WBC for the blood analysis while biochemical study, TP, GLOB, and ALT showed statistical differences (p < 0.05) with all of them having their best values at T3. The rest of the blood and serum parameters considered did not show significant differences (p> 0.05). Hence, Justicia carnea aqeuous leaf extract is recommended for use in broiler production at 15 mLs daily administration