Zeitschrift für Probiotika und Gesundheit
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Possibility for Probiotic Sources of Methionine for Organic Poultry Nutritional Supplementation: An Early Review

Suwat Saengkerdsub, Corliss A O’Bryan, Philip G Crandall and Steven C Ricke

Methionine is a nutritionally essential amino acid required in the diet of humans and livestock, including poultry. Chickens are unable to produce methionine and therefore must obtain it through their diets. Generally, methionine is one of the first limiting amino acids in poultry nutrition and typically in most diets this amino acid has to be added to the poultry feed. Currently, methionine is produced by chemical processes or hydrolyzing proteins. However, chemical synthesis is expensive and produces a mixture of D- and L-methionine. In addition, these sources of amino acids are problematic as nutritional supplements for organic poultry production. It may be possible to develop microbial sources of methionine that would meet the criteria for organic use but since genetic modification is not allowed this will require isolation of naturally occurring methionine over-producers. Application of such cultures may work as external sources of pure methionine but it may be more cost effective to develop a probiotic approach either by directly administering such cultures or enriching for members of the gastrointestinal population already present that have this ability. This review discusses these strategies and the criteria required to meet the requirements for methionine supplementation in these production systems.