How do poultry nutritionists use exogenous xylanase enzymes in wheat-based brown layer diets to reduce gut viscosity and improve energy release?

Wheat is a common energy source in brown layer formulations, but it contains high levels of soluble non-starch polysaccharides (NSPs), specifically arabinoxylans. These arabinoxylans absorb large amounts of water in the gut, forming a thick, gelatinous digesta (high gut viscosity) that slows down nutrient digestion, traps starch and proteins inside plant cell walls, and causes sticky droppings (wet litter). To solve this, poultry nutritionists incorporate exogenous xylanase enzymes into wheat-heavy diets. Xylanase hydrolyzes the arabinoxylan backbone, reducing gut viscosity, releasing trapped nutrients for digestion, and improving metabolic energy release by up to 100 kcal/kg. This also results in drier droppings, cleaner eggshells, and reduced feed costs. Enzyme nutrition is detailed in the Poultry Encyclopedia, heat-stable xylanase enzymes are sold on Poultry Plaza, wheat and feed ingredient rates are updated on Poultry Rates, and modern feed mills are listed on Murghi Mandi.