Biomin has been granted patent protection in the US for its multi-species synbiotic PoultryStar. The approval, patent number US 8101170, brings the total number of patents granted to Biominto over 100.Poultrystar combines live strains of the genus Enterococcus, Pediococcus, Lactobacillus and Bifodbacterium with prebiotic fructooligosaccharides, designed to  promote beneficial gut microflora in day-old chicks and birds of all ages, making them more resistant to pathogens. PoultryStar is the result of multinational research and industrial partnership, co-founded by the EU. “The unique probiotic strains in PoultryStar were isolated from the gut of healthy chickens making them host specific, and safe and efficacious for use as a feed additive for poultry,” said Michaela Mohnl, product manager for probiotics within Biomin. „Importantly, the PoultryStar strains were selected from different parts of the chicken intestinal tract to ensure their reproduction and colonisation throughout most of the gut,” she added. A series of studies conducted at the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent University showed that PoultryStar was efficacious in the control of poultry diseases related to Clostridium perfringens, like Necrotic enteritis. Later research findings from the Department of Poultry Science, University of Arkansas revealed that the prophylactic feeding of PoultryStar to broilers significantly reduced the incidence of lameness.