Loading patent…
AssigneeKemin Industries, Inc.
InventorsJeffrey Richard LeBrun, Robert Levine, Geoffrey Paul Horst
Estimating the term…
Immune function of an animal can be modulated by administration of a composition that includes beta glucan. The beta glucan can be derived from Euglena, which provides a form of beta glucan that is different from other organisms, where the beta glucan is predominantly unbranched beta-(1,3)-glucan. Beta glucan can also be complexed with a metal, such as zinc, and/or can combined with an animal feed component to form an animal feed composition. Use of such compositions can improve the well being of an animal, and may augment or even replace the use of antibiotics in certain circumstances.
A method of stimulating an immune response in an animal, the method comprising feeding to the animal a composition comprising (i) heterotrophically grown Euglena comprising greater than 20 weight % beta-(1,3)-glucan, wherein the Euglena is grown and fermented in a fermenter under sterile conditions and dried to contain less than 10% moisture, and (ii) an animal feed component, wherein the beta-(1,3)-glucan is present in an amount from 0.001% to 0.020% of the total weight of the animal feed.
A method of stimulating an immune response in an animal, the method comprising feeding to the animal a composition comprising (i) heterotrophically grown Euglena comprising greater than 20 weight % beta-(1,3)-glucan, wherein the Euglena is grown and fermented in a fermenter under sterile conditions and dried to contain less than 10% moisture, and (ii) an animal feed component, wherein the beta-(1,3)-glucan is at about 10 ppm to about 200 ppm in the animal feed, said beta glucan comprising greater than about 90% unbranched beta-(1,3)-glucan.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.