Effects of yeast selenium supplementation on the growth performance, meat quality, immunity, and antioxidant capacity of goose

The aim was to investigate the effects of yeast selenium (YS) supplementation on the growth performance, meat quality, immunity, and antioxidant variables of geese. A total of 96 one-day-old geese with similar body weight were randomly divided into four groups, with three replicates per group and eight geese in each replicate. The birds were fed basal diets supplemented with 0, 0.10, 0.30, 0.50 mg/kg YS (on selenium basis) during the 63-day experiment. Yeast selenium supplementation showed no effect on the growth performance of geese, but significantly improved the meat quality. No changes in ash or fat content were observed in breast muscle, but significant (p < 0.05) protein content increase was detected in the 0.1 and 0.5 mg/kg groups. Yeast selenium supplementation significantly (p < 0.05 or p < 0.01) promoted Se deposition in liver, kidney, pancreas, and muscle and the highest increases were all detected in the 0.5 mg/kg group. Yeast selenium supplementation enhanced the organ and cellular immunity of geese, but did not alter the humoral immunity. Furthermore, dietary YS significantly (p < 0.05) promoted the antioxidant capacity of both muscle and liver, but the effects varied with YS levels and organs. Hence, dietary YS supplementation was a good measure to improve the meat quality, Se content, immunity function, and antioxidant capacity of goose.