Unraveling of Seaweed Bioactive Substances and Their Nutritional Regulation Functions for Poultry
Si-Bing Li, Qinghua Yao, Xue-Qing Ye, Balamuralikrishnan Balasubramanian, Wenchao Liu
Abstract
Seaweed is a rich and valuable marine biological resource that contains various bioactive substances, including polysaccharides, polyphenols, fatty acids, and more. These compounds exhibit a range of biological activities, such as antimicrobial, antioxidant, and immunomodulation effects. In the face of challenges related to intensive farming, poultry are often exposed to multiple stressors during production, which can lead to oxidative stress, impaired intestinal barrier function, and excessive inflammatory responses. Due to their potent biological activities, seaweeds and their bioactive components have shown potential in improving poultry health and performance. This paper mainly reviews the classification of seaweeds and their extracts, their main biological functions, and the research progress on the application to poultry, with the aim of providing a reference for the research and application of seaweed active substances as functional feed additives in poultry.