This investigation was carried out in order to study the influence of glutamine supplementation in the ration on performance and on the intestinal structure development of broiler chickens. Three hundred and twenty day-old broiler chickens were used in a completely randomized experiment with two treatments and four repetitions, being T1 supplemented with 1% L-glutamine and T2 - control (not supplemented). The performance was evaluated (feed intake, body weight gain and feed conversion) at 7, 21 and 49 days of age. At the same ages birds were sacrificed and samples from different parts of the intestine were collected (duodenum, jejunum and ileum) to be submitted to morphometric studies under light microscopy using an image analysis system (Video Plan). The variables studied were villous height, crypt depth and villous:crypt ratio. It was demonstrated that 1% glutamine supplementation in the ration did not influence the broiler chicken performance (P>0.05) during the different phases of growth; however, glutamine changes the villous height (P<0.01), crypt depth and villous:crypt ratio in the duodenum, as well as the villous height in the ileum at seven days of age.
Broiler; glutamine; weight gain; small intestine; mucosae development
