Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41935446›Full record

ArticlePoultry science2026

Effect of N-acetyl cysteine on productive performance, biochemical indicators, mRNA expression of growth, antioxidant and heat shock protein related genes and hepatic morphology in broilers under heat stress.

Amal M El-Barbary, Amany A El-Sahn, Eman A Manaa, Ayman Khalifah, Asmaa Aboelnour, Ayham Abdulkader, Ayman E Taha, Mahmoud Alagawany, Mervat A Abdel-Latif

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Poultry science, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Amal M El-BarbaryPoultry Breeding Research Department, Animal Production Research Institute, Agriculture Research Center, Giza, Egypt.
Amany A El-SahnPoultry Breeding Research Department, Animal Production Research Institute, Agriculture Research Center, Giza, Egypt.
Eman A ManaaAnimal and Poultry Production and Breeding, Department of Animal Wealth Development, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Benha University, Toukh 13736, Egypt.
Ayman KhalifahLivestock Research Department, Arid lands Cultivation Research Institute, City of Scientific Research and Technological Applications (SRTA - City), New Borg. EL Arab, Egypt.
Asmaa AboelnourDepartment of Histology and Cytology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Damanhour University, Damanhour 22511, Egypt.
Ayham AbdulkaderDepartment of Animal Production, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Idlib University, Syria. Electronic address: dr.ayhamabdulkader@yahoo.com.
Ayman E TahaDepartment of Public Health, College of Veterinary Medicine, King Faisal University, Al-Ahsa 31982, Saudi Arabia. Electronic address: aetaha@kfu.edu.sa.
Mahmoud AlagawanyPoultry Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Zagazig University, 44511 Zagazig, Egypt.
Mervat A Abdel-LatifDepartment of Nutrition and Veterinary Clinical Nutrition, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Damanhour University, Damanhour 22511, Egypt. Electronic address: mervat.abdellatif@vetmed.dmu.edu.eg.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Poultry farmers in tropical, subtropical, and temperate climates have challenges due to heat stress caused by heat waves. Egypt's already dry climate will become even more severe due to climate change. The aim of the experiment was to examine the impact of N-acetyl cysteine (NAC) as antioxidant on growth performance, biochemical indicators, heat shock protein related genes and hepatic morphology for broiler chicks under heat stress. Two hundred and forty one-week-old male broiler chicks (Cobb 500) with an average initial body weight of 158.81 ± 8.03 g were used in a completely randomized design with four treatments and ten replicates for 35 days. The basal diet was fed to the first group. The second (NAC1), third (NAC3), and fourth (NAC5) ones were dietary supplemented with 1, 3, and 5 g/kg NAC, respectively until 35 days old. Body weight (BW) and body weight gain (BWG) were improved (p ˂ 0.05) in N-acetyl cysteine supplemented groups with at 3 g/ kg while feed conversion ratio (FCR) was improved in NAC3 and NAC5 respectively. Biochemical indices were improved by NAC supplementation compared to control group without negative effects on hematological parameters. Upregulation (p < 0.001) of growth hormone related genes (growth hormone (GH), growth hormone receptors (GHR), and insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF1)) was recorded in NAC3 group in comparison with other groups. Also, upregulation (p < 0.05) of antioxidant-related genes (catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase 1 (GPX1), and superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1)) of NAC3 group was shown. Meanwhile, the genes associated with heat shock proteins (heat shock transcription factor 1 (HSF1), heat shock protein 70 (HSP70), and heat shock protein 90 (HSP90) showed downregulations (p < 0.05) in the NAC3 group compared to others. A notable reduction in congestion and erythrocytic extravasation was shown in the NAC3 group. Also, the morphology of the hepatocytes was more similar to normal. Collectively, dietary N-acetyl cysteine supplementation at a level of 3 g/kg ameliorates the adverse impacts of heat stress in broilers regarding growth performance, biochemical indicators, antioxidants and heat shock protein related genes and hepatic morphology.

Indexed as

AcetylcysteineAntioxidantsAvian ProteinsChickensGene ExpressionHeat-Shock ResponseHot TemperatureAnimal FeedAnimalsDietDietary SupplementsDose-Response Relationship, DrugHeat-Shock ProteinsLiverMaleRandom AllocationAcetylcysteineAntioxidantsAvian ProteinsHeat-Shock ProteinsRNA, MessengerAntioxidantBroilersGrowthHeat shock proteinsN-acetyl cysteine

Identifiers

PMID41935446
PMCPMC13087770

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.