Lactobacilli-Based Pro and Postbiotic Efficacy Are Also Influenced by Other Factors Than Dietary Challenging Conditions.

The present study aimed to confirm the previously reported 'recovery' effect to a challenging diet (CD) of a Lactobacilli-based probiotic (Pro) and its derived postbiotic (Post) in broilers. Identical diet compositions were used, and observations were extended to a second CD diet. A completely randomised block design of 2 × 3 treatment groups with two CDs and three additive conditions (Control, Pro, Post) was used.

Microbiota but not immune modulation by a pro- and postbiotic was associated with the diet-additive interaction in broilers.

This study investigated the diet-additive interactions of a Lactobacilli-based probiotic (Pro) and postbiotic (Post) on immune parameters and cecal microbiota composition, with subsequent effects on the metabolome in broilers. A completely randomized block design was employed with 2 diets [standard (SD), and challenge (CD)] and 3 additive conditions (Control, Pro, Post) involving 1,368 one-day-old male Ross 308 broilers equally distributed among 36 pens in a 42 d study. Diets were formulated to contain identical nutrient levels, with CD higher than SD in non-starch polysaccharide content by including rye and barley.

Diet composition influences probiotic and postbiotic effects on broiler growth and physiology.

Dietary ingredient and nutrient composition may affect the efficacy of additives in broilers. Specific feed ingredients can represent dietary challenging conditions for broilers, resulting in impaired performances and health, which might be alleviated by dietary probiotics and postbiotics. We assessed the effects of a Lactobacilli probiotic (Pro) and postbiotic (Post) when added to a standard (SD) and challenge (CD) diet.

Transgenerational Effects of Maternal Immune Activation on Specific Antibody Responses in Layer Chickens.

Activation of the maternal immune system may affect innate and adaptive immune responses in the next generation and may therefore have implications for vaccine efficacy and dietary immune modulation by feed additives. However, transgenerational effects on immune responses in chickens have been investigated to a limited extend. The present study investigated effects of intratracheal (i.

Low Incubation Temperature During Late Incubation and Early Feeding Affect Broiler Resilience to Necrotic Enteritis in Later Life.

Resilient animals can cope with environmental disturbances in life with minimal loss of function. Resilience can be enhanced by optimizing early-life conditions. In poultry, eggshell temperature () during incubation and early feeding are two early-life conditions that are found to alter neonatal chick quality as well as immune response in later life.

Transgenerational effects of innate immune activation in broiler breeders on growth performance and immune responsiveness.

The impact of transgenerational effects on growth performance and immunity has not yet been studied extensively within the poultry husbandry sector. An important factor is the impact of the hens on the physical well-being and fitness to the environment of the offspring. This study is the first to investigate the effect of stimulating the maternal innate immune system with lipopolysaccharides (LPS) or β-glucan on growth performance and immune responses in the next generation.

Effects of Early Nutrition and Sanitary Conditions on Oral Tolerance and Antibody Responses in Broiler Chickens.

Greater antigenic exposure might accelerate activation and maturation of the humoral immune system. After hatch, commercial broiler chickens can have early (EN) or delayed (DN) access to nutrition, up to 72 h after hatch. The immune system of EN versus DN broilers is likely more exposed to antigens after hatch.

Training of Primary Chicken Monocytes Results in Enhanced Pro-Inflammatory Responses.

Beta-glucan-stimulated mammalian myeloid cells, such as macrophages, show an increased responsiveness to secondary stimulation in a nonspecific manner. This phenomenon is known as trained innate immunity and is important to prevent reinfections. Trained innate immunity seems to be an evolutionary conserved phenomenon among plants, invertebrates and mammalian species.

Innate immune training and metabolic reprogramming in primary monocytes of broiler and laying hens.

Recently, we have reported trained innate immunity in laying chicken monocytes. In the present study, we further investigated trained innate immunity of monocytes in layers and broilers. Monocytes of both breeds isolated from blood were trained in vitro with β-glucan, rec-chicken IL-4 or a combination of both, and restimulated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS), after which inflammation and metabolism-related responses were measured.

Early-life microbiota transplantation affects behavioural responses, serotonin and immune characteristics in chicken lines divergently selected on feather pecking.

Gut microbiota influences host behaviour and physiology, such as anxiety, stress, serotonergic and immune systems. These behavioural and physiological characteristics are related to feather pecking (FP), a damaging behaviour in chickens that reduces animal welfare and productivity. Moreover, high FP (HFP) and low FP (LFP) lines differed in microbiota composition.

Chicken lines divergently selected on feather pecking differ in immune characteristics.

It is crucial to identify whether relations between immune characteristics and damaging behaviors in production animals exist, as these behaviors reduce animal welfare and productivity. Feather pecking (FP) is a damaging behavior in chickens, which involves hens pecking and pulling at feathers of conspecifics. To further identify relationships between the immune system and FP we characterized high FP (HFP) and low FP (LFP) selection lines with regard to nitric oxide (NO) production by monocytes, specific antibody (SpAb) titers, natural (auto)antibody (N(A)Ab) titers and immune cell subsets.

Differences in gut microbiota composition of laying hen lines divergently selected on feather pecking.

Feather pecking (FP), a damaging behavior where laying hens peck and pull at feathers of conspecifics, is multifactorial and has been linked to numerous behavioral and physiological characteristics. The gut microbiota has been shown to influence host behavior and physiology in many species, and could therefore affect the development of damaging behaviors, such as FP. Yet, it is unknown whether FP genotypes (high FP [HFP] and low FP [LFP] lines) or FP phenotypes (i.

Stress response, peripheral serotonin and natural antibodies in feather pecking genotypes and phenotypes and their relation with coping style.

Feather pecking (FP), a serious welfare and economic issue in the egg production industry, has been related to coping style. Proactive and reactive coping styles differ in, among others, the stress response, serotonergic activity and immune activity. Yet, it is unknown whether genetic lines divergently selected on FP (i.

Effects of early feeding and dietary interventions on development of lymphoid organs and immune competence in neonatal chickens: A review.

With the ongoing intensification of the poultry industry and the continuous need to control pathogens, there is a critical need to extend our understanding of the avian immune system and the role of nutritional interventions on development of immune competence in neonatal chicks. In this review, we will focus on the ontogeny of the lymphoid organs during embryonic life and the first 2 weeks post-hatch, and how early feeding practices improve heath and modulate the development and function of the immune system in young chicks. The evidence for the positive impact of the nutrition of breeder hens on embryonic development and on the survival and immunity of their chicks will also be outlined.

Maternal Fish Oil Supplementation Affects the Social Behavior, Brain Fatty Acid Profile, and Sickness Response of Piglets.

Background: Maternal dietary docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) intake is thought to affect development in the offspring.

Objective: We assessed the impact of maternal dietary DHA on behavior, brain fatty acid (FA) profile, and sickness response of offspring in pigs, a pertinent model for human nutrition.

Methods: Sows (n = 24) were fed a diet with DHA-rich fish oil (FO) (20 g/kg) or high-oleic acid sunflower oil (HOSF) (20 g/kg) from day 61 of gestation through lactation.

Age and genetic selection affect auto-immune profiles of chickens.

Specificity, antibody isotype distribution and levels, of natural autoantibodies (NAAb) may be potential informative parameters for immune mediated natural disease resistance, immune modulation, and maintenance of physiological homeostasis. In a previous study we detected IgM and IgG antibodies to liver antigens in plasma from 1 year old chickens. Auto-immune profiles directed towards liver antigens differed between chicken lines divergently selected for specific antibody responses to sheep red blood cells.

Genetic and phenotypic selection affect natural (auto-) antibody reactivity of chickens.

Specificity, antibody isotype distribution and levels of natural antibodies (NAb) may be potential informative parameters for immune mediated natural disease resistance, immune modulation, and maintenance of physiological homeostasis. A large proportion of mammalian NAb have affinity for or are directed against self-antigens; so called natural auto antibodies (N(A)Ab). In the present study we showed the presence and typed levels and isotypes (total immunoglobulins, IgG and IgM) of N(A)Ab in plasma binding the 'auto-antigen' complex chicken liver cell lysate (CLL) of one-year old chickens from different genotype and phenotype backgrounds by ELISA and quantitative Western blotting.

Ontogeny of the avian intestinal immunoglobulin repertoire: modification in CDR3 length and conserved VH-pseudogene usage.

Immunoglobulins play an important role in maintenance of mucosal homeostasis in the gut. The antigen binding specificity of these immunoglobulins depends for a large part on the hypervariable CDR3 region. To gain knowledge about isotype-specific development of the CDR3 repertoire we examined CDR3 spectratypes at multiple time points between 4 and 70 days post hatch.

Gene expression in chicken reveals correlation with structural genomic features and conserved patterns of transcription in the terrestrial vertebrates.

Background: The chicken is an important agricultural and avian-model species. A survey of gene expression in a range of different tissues will provide a benchmark for understanding expression levels under normal physiological conditions in birds. With expression data for birds being very scant, this benchmark is of particular interest for comparative expression analysis among various terrestrial vertebrates.

Successive immunoglobulin and cytokine expression in the small intestine of juvenile chicken.

The intestinal mucosa is of major importance for immune development. To further study the ontogeny of avian mucosal immunity, mRNA levels of IgM, IgY and IgA, the polymeric immunoglobulin receptor (pIgR) and a number of cytokines were determined at different ages in jejunum and ileum of non-immunized healthy juvenile layer chickens. Immunoglobulin genes were successively expressed in jejunum and ileum.

Plant expression of chicken secretory antibodies derived from combinatorial libraries.

Delivery of secretory IgA antibodies (sIgA) to mucosal surfaces is a promising strategy to passively prevent infectious diseases. Plants have been proposed as biofactories for such complex immunoglobulin molecules. Recently, the molecular characterization of all four monomers of chicken sIgA (IgA immunoglobulin heavy and light chains, J-chain and secretory component) has been completed, allowing recombinant, up scaled production of chicken sIgA and extension of passive immune strategies to poultry.

Display and selection of chicken IgA Fab fragments.

Passive immune therapy is regaining interest to prevent and cure infectious diseases both in human and veterinary medicine. Therefore, systems are required that enable efficient targeted selection of antibodies originating from virtually any animal species. Here, a system for the selection of chicken IgA, using phage display, is described.

A functional polymeric immunoglobulin receptor in chicken (Gallus gallus) indicates ancient role of secretory IgA in mucosal immunity.

Animals are continuously threatened by pathogens entering the body through natural openings. Here we show that in chicken ( Gallus gallus ), secretory IgA (sIgA) protects the epithelia lining these natural cavities. A gene encoding a chicken polymeric Ig receptor ( GG-pIgR ), a key component of sIgA, was identified, and shown to be expressed in the liver, intestine and bursa of Fabricius.

Adoptive transfer of natural antibodies to non-immunized chickens affects subsequent antigen-specific humoral and cellular immune responses.

To determine a regulatory function of natural antibodies in the immune response of chickens, pooled plasma obtained from non-immunized (naïve) 15 months old hens was subjected to keyhole limpet hemocyanin (KLH) antigen-affinity chromatography. Purified KLH-binding antibodies were adoptively transferred intravenously to 5 weeks-old cocks that were subsequently immunized subcutaneously 24 h later with KLH. Control groups consisted of birds that were either adoptively transferred with KLH-binding antibodies purified from plasma of KLH-immunized chickens, or PBS, or a salt precipitated total immunoglobulin fraction obtained from the corresponding pooled nai;ve chicken plasma, respectively.

Different levels of natural antibodies in chickens divergently selected for specific antibody responses.

We studied the presence of Natural antibodies in plasma samples from individual birds from selected chicken lines at young and old age. Binding, specificity, and relative affinity to various antigens were determined in plasma from non-immunized female chickens at 5 weeks of age, and in plasma obtained from the same chickens one year later using indirect two-step ELISA. Birds were from three different lines.