Toxico-pathological effects of mycotoxins in broilers

Mycotoxins can affect human health directly or indirectly (food chain). The mycotoxin causes human illness by acting as immunosuppressive and carcinogenic agent when ingested with different food items. Mycoses are the best-known diseases of fungal etiology and its toxic secondary metabolites also cause important health hazards. Thus, it concludes that mycotoxins pose an important risk factor to human as well as animal health. This study will help in better understandings about effects of mycotoxins on birds’ health. The present study was designed to investigate pathological and immunosuppressive effects of aflatoxinB1 (AFB1) and Ochratoxin A (OTA) in broiler chicks. Study was conducted on 270 broiler chicks. After exposure of mycotoxin, kidney and liver showed significant increase in weight. Serum alanine aminotransferase and total serum proteins were significantly increased and decreased, respectively. Serum urea and creatinine were significantly increased after exposure. This all increased their susceptibility to infections. This study suggested that AFB1 & OTA show synergistic effects in developing different pathological changes in the body of chicks.