Influence of a Polyherbal Choline Source in Dogs: Body Weight Changes, Blood Metabolites, and Gene Expression

Simple Summary In pet foods, choline is supplied as choline chloride. This salt is hygroscopic and makes food processing difficult. This has led to its replacement, in livestock farms, by chemically stable herbal additives rich in phosphatidylcholine. The herbal composition and the contribution of secondary metabolites give the additive nutraceutical properties that could benefit the animal's health. In this sense, increased levels of a polyherbal additive were supplied in dog diets, and their effects were compared to diets with choline chloride and without extra choline. The results showed that the animal response was the same with the two sources of choline. However, the herbal additive at the gene level demonstrated properties to prevent cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, cancer prevention, inflammatory and immune response, and behavior and cognitive processes in dogs. Choline chloride is used to provide choline in dog foods; however, in other domestic species, it has been replaced with a polyherbal containing phosphatidylcholine. A polyherbal containing Achyrantes aspera, Trachyspermum ammi, Citrullus colocynthis, Andrographis paniculata, and Azadirachta indica was evaluated in adult dogs through body weight changes, subcutaneous fat thickness, blood metabolites, and gene expression. Forty dogs (4.6 +/- 1.6 years old) who were individually housed in concrete kennels were randomly assigned to the following treatments: unsupplemented diet (377 mg choline/kg), choline chloride (3850 mg/kg equivalent to 2000 mg choline/kg diet), and polyherbal (200, 400, and 800 mg/kg) for 60 days. Blood samples were collected on day 59 for biochemistry, biometry, and gene expression analysis through microarray assays. Intake, final body weight, and weight changes were similar for the two choline sources. Feed intake variation among dogs (p = 0.01) and dorsal fat (p = 0.03) showed a quadratic response to herbal choline. Dogs that received the polyherbal diet had reduced blood cholesterol levels (Quadratic, p = 0.02). The gene ontology analysis indicated that 15 biological processes were modified (p <= 0.05) with implications for preventing cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, cancer prevention, inflammatory and immune response, and behavior and cognitive process. According to these results that were observed in a 60 day trial, the polyherbal form could replace choline chloride in dog diets at a concentration of 400 mg/kg.