EFFECT OF BETA-CAROTENE, CANTHAXANTHIN, LUTEIN, AND VITAMIN-E ON NEONATAL IMMUNITY OF CHICKS WHEN SUPPLEMENTED IN THE BROILER BREEDER DIETS

The study was designed to assess neonatal immunity of chicks hatched f rom breeders fed diets supplemented with beta-carotene, canthaxanthin, lutein, or vitamin E. Broiler breeder birds were fed experimental die ts consisting of control, 0.04% beta-carotene, 0.04% canthaxanthin, 0. 04% lutein, 0.03% alpha-tocopherol acetate, or 0.04% beta-carotene plu s 0.03% alpha-tocopherol acetate. Three weeks after initiation of expe rimental feeding, birds were vaccinated against Newcastle disease viru s. Chicks hatched from the eggs of these breeders were used to determi ne the neonatal immune responses. There were no significant difference s in weight gain and antibody titers of 3-wk-old chicks. H-3-Thymidine uptake by bursal lymphocytes when stimulated with tetrahydrofuran was significantly higher for the chicks hatched from breeders fed diets s upplemented with vitamin E, or vitamin E plus beta-carotene, than in c ontrols. H-3-Thymidine uptake by splenic lymphocytes when stimulated w ith concanavalin A and phorbol 12-myristate 13 acetate was significant ly higher for the chicks hatched from breeders fed diets supplemented with vitamin E or beta-carotene alone, or vitamin E plus beta-carotene , than for the control chicks. Chicks hatched from hens supplemented w ith vitamin E had significantly higher antibody titers at 1 and 7 d of age than chicks from the control group. Vitamin E supplementation of breeder birds increased the immune response of their progeny.