Bioavailability of water- and lipid-soluble thiamin compounds in broiler chickens

The bioavailability of thiamin mononitrate, thiamin chloride-hydrochloride and benfotiamin was compared in broiler chickens, A thiamin-deficient diet was supplemented with either 1.8 and 1.5 mg/kg thiamin equivalent as water- soluble salts, or with 1.5 and 1.2 mg/kg thiamin equivalent as benfotiamin, respectively, and fed to 3 replicate groups/treatment for 21 days. Weight gain, feed consumption and feed conversion rate were not significantly affe cted by solubility or dietary level of thiamin. Likewise, using biochemical indices of thiamin status (erythrocyte transketolase activation coefficien t, and thiamin concentrations in blood and liver), no differences were foun d between the water-soluble thiamin salts, indicating that they have identi cal potency. In contrast, biochemical indices of thiamin status showed a si gnificantly higher bioavailability for benfotiamin than for the water-solub le sources.