Abstract

Because they contain bioactive chemicals that promote growth and enhance health, plant-based feed additives such as Moringa oleifera have recently attracted increased amounts of attention. Lambs in dry locations suffer from oxidative stress and nutritional deficits that impact their productivity. The objective of this study was to assess the effects of varying amounts of Moringa oleifera leaf powder (1.5%, 3.0%, and 4.5%) on growth performance, specific blood biochemical parameters, oxidative stress indices, and antioxidant enzyme-encoding gene expression in Awassi lamb feeds. In this study, 24 Awassi lambs (22±3 kg) were randomly divided into four groups (6 per group) for 90 days. Measurements included body weight, feed consumption, serum analysis (glucose, total protein, cholesterol, urea, total antioxidant capacity (TAC), and malondialdehyde (MDA)), and gene expression analysis of the SOD1, GPX1, CAT, and Nrf2 genes using PCR technology. The results showed that the addition of moringa to lamb feeds led to a significant improvement in production performance, with the 4.5% group outperforming the others in terms of final weight. (36.89 kg), average daily gain (187 g/day) and best feed conversion ratio (6.60). The total protein concentration (72.9 g/L), total antioxidant capacity (0.99 μmol), cholesterol concentration (2.25 mmol/L) and malondialdehyde concentration (3.11 μmol) also significantly increased. At the molecular level, the gene expression of all the studied genes (SOD1, GPX1, CAT, and Nrf2) significantly increased, especially in the 4.5% group. The results suggest that up to 4.5% moringa leaf powder could be considered a natural addition to lamb feeds to improve growth and enhance antioxidant defense in dry areas.