Tissue and plasma antioxidant status in response to dietary methionine concentration and source in broilers

This study hypothesized that plasma and tissue antioxidant status of broilers is positively influenced when dietary Met concentrations exceed, and negatively when they go below NRC recommendations. In addition, different Met sources are hypothesized to affect the antioxidant defence system differently. Day-old male Cobb-500 broilers (n=336) were allotted to seven groups and phase-fed three wheat-soya bean meal-based basal diets during days 1-10, 11-21 and 22-35. The basal diets (Met- group, Met+Cys concentration 15% below NRC recommendations) were supplemented with 0.10%, 0.25% or 0.40% Met either as DL-Met (DLM) or DL-2-hydroxy-4-(methylthio) butanoic acid (DL-HMTBA) (equimolar comparison). Growth performance and carcass weights were lower in the Met- group compared to the groups whose diets met or exceeded Met requirements. The antioxidant defence system was not influenced by the Met source. However, in the liver, concentrations of glutathione increased with increasing dietary Met concentrations. Tocopherol concentrations in the liver at days 10 and 21 were lower in the Met- group than in the groups supplemented with Met. However, liver concentrations of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBA-RS) and protein carbonyls (PC) were largely not influenced by dietary Met concentration. Plasma tocopherol concentrations at day 35 were lower, and those of TBA-RS and PC at day 35 were higher in Met- group than in the groups fed the Met-supplemented diets. In jejunum, but not in liver, relative mRNA abundances and activities of superoxide dismutase, catalase and glutathione peroxidase were higher in the Met- group than in the groups fed Met-supplemented diets. These data indicate that suboptimum supply of Met results in decreased antioxidant concentrations in plasma and body tissues, and increases oxidative stress in the jejunum mucosa. However, supplementation of Met in excess of the requirements (based on NRC) compared to diets adequate in Met+Cys did not influence the antioxidant defence system.