Assessment of the Effect of Thyme Essential Oil on Biochemical Parameters in Endurance Horses http://www.doi.org/10.26538/tjnpr/v7i6.10

Abstract

Essential oils as natural plant extracts have received significant attention in recent time. The extracts of thyme play vital roles in the metabolic and regulatory functions of the body. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of thyme essential oil on the metabolic functions in endurance horses and to determine the dose for the optimal levels of major biochemical parameters. Thyme essential oils were administered orally to the horses at doses of 150 mg/kg and 600 mg/kg body weight by mixing the oil with their diet. Serum biochemical parameters such as total cholesterol, triglycerides, creatinine, urea, uric acid, total proteins, aspartate
aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase were evaluated according to standard methods. The results showed that the addition of thyme to the horses' diets seems to have a beneficial effect with decrease in key biochemical parameter like total cholesterol (0.68 ± 0.02 g/L), uric acid (0.006 ± 0. 0005 g/L), and alanine aminotransferase (7.90 ± 5.28 g/L), and aspartate aminotransferase (213.00 ± 47.46 g/L) at 150 mg/kg, and decrease in triglycerides (0.27 ± 0.28 g/L), creatinine (0.013 ± 0.004 mg/L), and urea (0.28 ± 0.09 mg/L) at 600 mg/kg. Thyme-based diet could help improve the fitness, performance, and overall wellbeing of race horses through optimization of
their serum biochemical profile.