Nutritional evaluation and histopathological assessment of unprocessed Senna Occidentalis (Coffee Senna) seed meal in broiler chicks

Abstract

A 21 days feeding trial was conducted to evaluate the effect of unprocessed Senna occidentalis seed meal
on gross lesions in broiler chickens. One hundred and twenty (120) day-old Anak (2000) broiler chicks
were weighed and randomly allotted to four dietary treatments in the deep litter system, replicated 3 times
with 30 birds each. Senna occidentalis seeds were collected from the environment of Taraba state
University Jalingo in Ardo-kola Local Government Area. They were allowed to dry, cleaned of dirt and
milled for the feeding trial. Four experimental diets were formulated T1 (0%) contained no Senna seed
and served as the control while T2, T3 and T4 contained 5, 10 and 15% Senna seed. The results of birds
fed with 15% unprocessed Senna occidentalis showed inflammation in the bursa of fibricious, congestion in
the intestine and ulceration, congestion in the caeca and the intestine were pale and distended. The results
also showed a decrease in relative weight of bursa of fabricious (P<0.05) and spleen (P<0.05). Based on
the results, Senna occidentalis was toxic to chicks. Hence, the need to detoxify the phytochemical
properties of the plant in order to enhance its usage in poultry feeds.