Metagenome of Areca catechu chickens
To investigate the effects of adding areca nut extract to feed on the growth performance and metabolic activity of Wenchang chickens, a total of 450 chickens with similar growth performance were selected for the experiment. They were randomly divided into five groups, with six replicates per group and 15 chickens per replicate. The control group (CCK) was fed a basal diet, the four experimental groups were fed a basal diet with different supplements: 0.3 g/kg areca nut extract (CNT1), 0.5 g/kg areca nut extract (CNT2), 0.8 g/kg areca nut extract (CNT3), and 1.2 g/kg areca nut extract (CNT4). The experiment lasted for 35 days. Analysis of the intestinal microbiota using metagenomic sequencing. The results shown the addition of 1.2 g/kg areca nut extract to feed can improve the growth performance of Wenchang chickens, accelerate metabolic activity and energy utilization, and enhance antioxidant and anti-inflammatory capacities.