Pharmacology and Prospects of Alpha-1-Monolaurin as an Alternative Growth Promoter in Poultry Industry

In recent years, replacing antibiotics in livestock and poultry feed with safer biologically active chemicals have been topic of prime interest. Antimicrobial drugs have been phased out from animal feedstuffs due to concerns that they contribute to bacterial resistance. Colistin has been added lately in the list of banned animal feed additives in India, which put a lot of pressure on poultry farmers to come up with antibiotic-free alternatives. Such a promising alternative is alpha-1-monolaurin, a type of medium chain fatty acids (MCFAs) which helps to enhance production metrics due to its several beneficial properties like antimicrobial, immunostimualting, anti-inflammatory and anti-pathogenic properties. During COVID-19 pandemic, it was also evaluated for its antiviral activity as main protease inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 virus. It is also known to have advantagoues effects on gut microbiota and gut health of the poultry. This paper reviews the pharmacology and prospects of alpha-1-Monolaurin as an alternative growth promoter in poultry industry.