Nigella sativa Seeds and Its Derivatives in Poultry Feed

The incidences of antibiotic residue in poultry products and the creation of drug resistance pathogens are prevalent due to the indiscriminate and excessive use of antibiotics in poultry diets. Persistent assessment of antibiotic alternatives has become imperative because of the growing global concerns about food security. Nigella sativa (black cumin) seeds could be considered as a favorable alternative to chemotherapeutic agents in poultry rations. N. sativa is naturally used in human diets and traditional remedies due to the presence of several pharmacologically active substances and a large amount of essential nutrients which gave it its properties as antimicrobial, antioxidant, antinociceptive, antiparasitic, hepatoprotective, analgesic, immunomodulatory, anti-inflammatory and growth-promoting agent. Several reports revealed the growth-enhancing effect of N. sativa under both normal and stress conditions. Alongside improved growth and egg production, feed utilization and feed-to-gain ratio, N. sativa decreased serum and yolk contents of cholesterol which led to improving egg and meat quality. Nutrient utilization, antioxidative status and immune response of birds fed diets with N. sativa have been remarkably increased. Gastrointestinal development and function were also improved while enumeration of pathogenic bacteria was decreased by feeding N. sativa or its derivatives. However, limited studies examined the effect of N. sativa on the chemical composition, antioxidant properties and polyunsaturated fatty acid contents in eggs and meat. The following context presents the effect of N. sativa seeds and its derivatives supplementation in poultry diets as growth promoter alternatives.