Toxic effect of Acremonium zeae on chicken in initiation

The objective os this work was to determine ifAcremonium zeae affects the develpment of chicks. The studywas condducted at the Colegio de Postgraduados, CampusMontecillo, the State of Mexico, from August to December,2010. Hatchlings were used for the experiment under a totallyrandomdesign with fi ve diets (treatments) and fi ve repetitions,each repetition with fi ve chicks. The animals were fed forthree weeks with each of the diets with different percentagesof added oatmeal, contaminated with A. zeae, and mixedwith corn to cover the nutritional requirements of chicken ininitiation. The treatments were: T1, 0% contaminated oatmeal:100% corn, (control); T2, 25% contaminated oatmeal: 75%corn; T3, 50% contaminated oatmeal: 50% corn; T4, 75%contaminated oatmeal: 25% corn; and, T5, 100% contaminatedoatmeal: 0% corn. The chickens were measured for weightgain and food intake every seven days for three weeks. Thestatistical analysis shows that the negative effect on weightgain and food intake is more evident from the second weekof feeding with a diet composition of minimum 50% oatmealcontaminated with the fungus.