Medicinal Mushrooms Supplements Alter Chicken Intestinal Microbiome

Chicken intestinal microbiomes are known to enhance chicken health and increase production. Identifying natural supplements that shift bacteria communities in favor of beneficial bacteria is critical. This study is a preliminary investigation of the use of medicinal mushrooms nutritional supplements (MSs) including Lentinus edodes, Ganoderma lucidum, Pleurotus ostreatus, and Cordyceps sp. to modulate bacteria in chicken guts. Two-hundred seventy 1-day-old broilers were weighed and randomly assigned to nine different treatments containing MSs. Treatments were assigned according to MS incubation times (14-56 days) and levels of inclusion (5% and 10%) into chicken feed as follows: (1) control MS0; (2) MS1, 14 days, 5%; (3) MS2, 14 days, 10%; (4) MS3, 28 days, 5%; (5) MS4, 28 days, 10%; (6) MS5, 42 days, 5%; (7) MS6, 42 days, 10%; (8) MS7, 56 days, 5%; and (9) MS8, 56 days, 10%. Changes in bacterial community in the stomach (S) and bursa (B) of experimental chickens were assessed using a next-generation sequencing approach. Results indicated that all MSs, except MS1-S (14 days, 5%) and MS4-S (28 days, 10%), completely eliminated Mollicutes, a class of stomach pathogens. MS7 (56 days, 5%) reduced Clostridia 4.8-fold and 3-fold in the stomach and bursa, respectively. The chicken stomach contained far more diverse bacteria than the bursa. Whereas the overall diversity of bacteria decreased with MSs, there was no consistent pattern with incubation time and inclusion level. The abundance of Gammaproteobacteria and unidentified species increased tremendously in both organs, while Bacilli were generally reduced. MS7 (56 days, 5%) showed the most promising result but needs further research. This study high-lights potential benefits from the use of fungal-based supplements as health enhancers in chicken production.