Abstract
This study was designed to evaluate the efficacy of N-acetylcysteine (NAC) and / or Hydrated Sodium Calcium Aluminosilicate (HSCAS) to counteract the toxic effects of aflatoxin AFB1 in broiler chickens. A total number 720, day-old broiler chicks were divided equally into eight groups. The groups were as follows: 1) control group with basal diet, 2) NAC alone (100 mg/kg diet), 3) HSCAS alone (5g/kg diet), 4) NAC (100 mg/kg diet) plus HSCAS (5g/kg diet), 5) AFB1 alone in the diet (1 mg/kg of feed) for 42 d, 6) AFB1 plus NAC (100 mg/kg diet 7) AFB1 plus HSCAS (5g/kg diet) and 8) AFB1 plus NAC (100 mg/kg diet) plus HSCAS (5g/kg diet).
Aflatoxin induced a significant decrease in serum and hepatic catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activities. While, there was an increase in serum malondialdehyde (MDA), aspartate amino-transferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), uric acid and creatinine levels. The activity of pancreatic enzymes showed significant increase in serum amylase and lipase activities after the chicks exposure to aflatoxin B1 .However, aflatoxin B1 group had a decrease in concentrations of serum total protein, albumin, alpha globulin, beta globulin and gamma globulin together with A/G ratio. The administration of N-acetylcysteine and / or HSCAS caused a decrease in malondialdehyde (MAD) levels and an increase in GSH, CAT, SOD and GPx compared to aflatoxicated group. In addition, the levels of ALT, AST, serum amylase and lipase levels were significantly reduced due to the protective effects given by N-acetylcysteine and / or HSCAS.
Broilers treated with AFB1 plus NAC, HSCAS and NAC + HSCAS were shown to be partially protected against deleterious effects on BWG (68.38, 61.24 and 84.17 %), daily feed intake (76.92,72.87and 86.96 %), feed conversion ratio (82.91, 73.64 and 99.65 %), serum total protein concentration, liver and kidney function, hepatic glutathione-S transferase, and reduced glutathione liver concentration. Our results suggest that NAC provided protection against negative effects on performance, and biochemical alterations induced by AFB1 in broiler chickens. Effects of NAC alone on chick performance were also evaluated. Addition of NAC to diet (100 mg/kg diet) did not negatively affect feed consumption, conversion index, or serum chemistry and did not induce structural changes in the liver or kidney.

Key words: Aflatoxins, broiler, detoxification.