Vet World   Vol.19   January-2026  Article - 18 

Alginate oligosaccharides derived from tropical brown seaweeds as sustainable alternatives to antibiotic growth promoters in poultry nutrition: Functional mechanisms and production perspectives

Background and Aim: The global restriction and withdrawal of antibiotic growth promoters (AGPs) in poultry production have accelerated the search for natural, safe, and sustainable feed additives that maintain bird health and productivity. Alginate oligosaccharides (AOS), derived from the depolymerization of alginate present in brown seaweeds, have gained increasing attention due to their multifunctional biological properties, including prebiotic, immunomodulatory, antioxidant, and antimicrobial activities. Although most available research has focused on alginate sources from temperate seaweeds, tropical brown seaweeds such as Sargassum and Turbinaria are abundant, renewable, and rich in alginate, particularly in Southeast Asia, making them attractive and underutilized resources for the development of functional feed additives. This review summarizes current knowledge on the biodiversity of tropical brown seaweeds, alginate extraction and depolymerization techniques suitable for feed-grade AOS production, and the physicochemical properties that influence their functionality in poultry nutrition. Emphasis is placed on AOS behavior in the poultry gastrointestinal tract, including resistance to enzymatic digestion, fermentation by beneficial microbiota, and stimulation of short-chain fatty acid production. Evidence from experimental studies indicates that dietary AOS supplementation improves gut morphology, enhances microbial balance, strengthens intestinal barrier function, and modulates immune responses. These effects are consistently associated with improved growth performance, feed efficiency, egg production, and antioxidant status, with outcomes comparable to or exceeding those achieved using AGPs. The review also highlights emerging processing strategies, such as low-energy extraction and encapsulation technologies, that enhance AOS stability and bioavailability during feed manufacturing. Overall, tropical seaweed-derived AOS represent a promising, sustainable alternative to AGPs in poultry systems, supporting productivity while addressing antimicrobial resistance and environmental sustainability concerns. Further large-scale field studies and optimization of dosage and formulation strategies are recommended to facilitate commercial adoption. 

Keywords: alginate oligosaccharides, antibiotic alternatives, gut health, poultry nutrition, prebiotics, seaweed bioactives, sustainable feed additives, tropical seaweed.

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How to cite this article: Reski S, Mahata ME, Rizal Y, Dewi YL. Alginate oligosaccharides derived from tropical brown seaweeds as sustainable alternatives to antibiotic growth promoters in poultry nutrition: Functional mechanisms and production perspectives. Vet World. 2026;19(1):224–263.

Received: 16-08-2025   Accepted: 15-12-2025   Published online: 20-01-2026

Corresponding author: Sepri Reski    E-mail: seprireski@ansci.unand.ac.id

DOI: 10.14202/vetworld.2026.224-263

Copyright: Reski, et al. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http:// creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.