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Insects Jun 2022Continuous improvements in morphological and histochemical analyses of could improve our understanding of the anatomy and physiology of these insects at both the...
Continuous improvements in morphological and histochemical analyses of could improve our understanding of the anatomy and physiology of these insects at both the cellular and tissue level. In this work, two different approaches have been performed to add new data on the abdomen of worker bees: (i) Micro-computed tomography (Micro-CT), which allows the identification of small-scale structures (micrometers) with adequate/optimal resolution and avoids sample damage and, (ii) histochemical multi-staining with Periodic Acid-Schiff-Alcian blue, Lactophenol-Saphranin O and pentachrome staining to precisely characterize the histological structures of the midgut and hindgut. Micro-CT allowed high-resolution imaging of anatomical structures of the honeybee abdomen with particular emphasis on the proventriculus and pyloric valves, as well as the connection of the sting apparatus with the terminal abdominal ganglia. Furthermore, the histochemical analyses have allowed for the first-time description of ventricular telocytes in honeybees, a cell type located underneath the midgut epithelium characterized by thin and long cytoplasmic projections called telopodes. Overall, the analysis of these images could help the detailed anatomical description of the cryptic structures of honeybees and also the characterization of changes due to abiotic or biotic stress conditions.
PubMed: 35735893
DOI: 10.3390/insects13060556 -
Poultry Science Mar 2021The view that genetic selection for carcass yield has limited the size of the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) of modern broilers has sparked concerns that their capacity to...
The view that genetic selection for carcass yield has limited the size of the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) of modern broilers has sparked concerns that their capacity to cope with energy dilution or bulk is also limited. We investigated the capacity of male Ross 308 broilers to deal with increasing levels of bulk and aimed to identify a feed bulk dimension responsible for limiting feed intake (FI). About 528 day-old broilers were allocated to 48 pens and offered a common starter feed until day 8, and 1 of 7 feeds from day 8 to 36 of age: a basal control (B), which was diluted to 3 levels (15, 30, or 45%) with either oat hulls (OH) or sugar beet pulp (SBP). Feed intake was measured daily and birds were dissected for GIT measurements at day 15, 22, and 36. Feed intake increased in birds offered OH15 (135 g/d), OH30 (140 g/d), and SBP15 (138 g/d) compared with birds offered the B feed (106 g/d; SEM 2.4). By increasing FI, birds were able to compensate for the lower energy content of their feeds. The greatest increase in FI was seen on OH30: its energy content (2,273 kcal/kg) was 26% lower than the B feed (3,081 kcal/kg). There was evidence of adaptation on the bulky feeds, as during the last week only birds on SBP45 were limited in FI and performance. The relative weights of the GIT were greater in the SBP than OH series, suggesting that the former needed to accommodate a higher bulk intake. For the OH series the increase in the relative GIT weights was confined to the gizzard and small intestine; whereas for the SBP series, the increase was extended to proventriculus and large intestine. Because only SBP45 was limiting FI, we were unable to identify a bulk dimension to be used to predict FI. Our data reject the suggestion that modern broilers have a reduced ability to cope with reductions in feed energy content.
Topics: Animal Feed; Animals; Caloric Restriction; Chickens; Eating; Feeding Behavior; Male
PubMed: 33516465
DOI: 10.1016/j.psj.2020.11.008 -
Poultry Science May 2021The extracellular calcium-sensing receptor (CaSR) and vitamin D receptor (VDR) play important roles in regulating calcium mobilization, calcium absorption, and calcium...
Molecular distribution and localization of extracellular calcium-sensing receptor (CaSR) and vitamin D receptor (VDR) at three different laying stages in laying hens (Gallus gallus domesticus).
The extracellular calcium-sensing receptor (CaSR) and vitamin D receptor (VDR) play important roles in regulating calcium mobilization, calcium absorption, and calcium homeostasis, and they could be potential therapeutic targets to osteoporosis in laying hens. The present study investigated the molecular distribution of CaSR and VDR and the localization of CaSR in the kidney, proventriculus (true stomach), duodenum, jejunum, ileum, colon, cecum, shell gland, and tibia of laying hens at 3 different laying stages (19, 40, and 55 wk). The results showed that the relative mRNA abundance of CaSR in the kidney, ileum, proventriculus, duodenum, and colon was higher (P < 0.05) than the other tissues at 40 and 55 wk. The relative mRNA abundance of CaSR in the tibia was higher (P < 0.05) at 55 wk than at 40 wk. However, there were no significant differences in the relative protein abundance of CaSR among all tested tissues at peak production or in each tissue at the 3 different laying stages (P > 0.05). The relative mRNA abundance of VDR was higher (P < 0.05) in the small intestine (duodenum, jejunum, and ileum) when compared with other tissues at the 3 different laying stages. The relative protein abundance of VDR in the duodenum was higher (P < 0.05) than that in the proventriculus, colon, and cecum. There were no significant differences in the VDR expression among the tested tissues at the 3 different laying stages (P > 0.05). The immunohistochemical results showed that the positive staining was found widely in each tissue. Moreover, different laying stages did not affect the localization of CaSR except for the tibia tissue. In conclusion, similar to VDR, CaSR was widely expressed not only in the gut but also in the tibia and shell gland in laying hens. The expression level of CaSR and VDR in all tested tissues was unchanged at the different laying stages.
Topics: Animals; Cecum; Chickens; Female; Ileum; Receptors, Calcitriol; Receptors, Calcium-Sensing
PubMed: 33752067
DOI: 10.1016/j.psj.2021.101060 -
Scientific Reports Oct 2022Globally, most gut microbiota-related studies have focused on broilers due to their diverse microbial communities compared to that of layer chicken. However, in Africa...
Globally, most gut microbiota-related studies have focused on broilers due to their diverse microbial communities compared to that of layer chicken. However, in Africa few studies have been undertaken despite the increasing benefits to the poultry industry. The utilization of Insect-Based diets to improve the gastrointestinal function and gut health in poultry is increasingly gaining global attention. Here, we evaluated the potential roles of commercial black soldier fly larvae-based feeds (BSFLF) in reshaping the abundance, composition and diversity of the gut microbiota of layer chickens using high throughput Oxford nanopore Minion sequencing of the full length bacterial 16S rRNA gene. Two hundred and fifty ISA Brown layer chicks were reared in pens for a period of 20 weeks. The layer pullets were allotted 5 dietary treatments that were formulated as follows: control diet (T1): 100% FM + 0% BSFL, T2: 25% BSFL + 75% FM; T3: 50% BSFL + 50% FM; T4: 75% BSFL + 25% FM, and T5: 100% BSFL + 0% FM. Sampling was done from the eight major regions including oesophagus, crop, proventriculus, gizzard, duodenum, ileum, large intestines and ceca. Out of the 400,064 classified reads analyzed, the most dominant phyla identified across the feed treatments were Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria. The diet treatment with 100% inclusion levels of BSFL showed the highest intra-species alpha diversity and richness according to Chao1 and Shannon index. Intra-species beta diversity assessment revealed that the diet types significantly influenced the abundance of the microbiota, but differences between most abundant taxa were similar. There was increase in abundance of potentially beneficial bacteria (Lactobacillus, Bacteroides and Enterococcus) with increased inclusion levels of BSFLF in layer pullets diets. Across the different gut segments, Lactobacillus dominated all the eight regions and the ceca was the most diverse segment. Our findings unravel complex gut microbial shift in laying hen fed BSFLF and therefore underpins the potential roles of beneficial bacteria as promising prebiotics and probiotics in reshaping of the gut microbiota to maintain good gut health.
Topics: Animal Feed; Animals; Bacteria; Chickens; Diptera; Female; Gastrointestinal Microbiome; Larva; Microbiota; RNA, Ribosomal, 16S
PubMed: 36202892
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-20736-0 -
Veterinary Research Forum : An... 2020The black proventriculus is a necropsy finding sign observed during post-mortem examinations of dead young chicks up to 10 days of age and due to variation in color of...
The black proventriculus is a necropsy finding sign observed during post-mortem examinations of dead young chicks up to 10 days of age and due to variation in color of the affected proventriculus organ, it may be ignored in some cases, in particular when the disease occurs simultaneously with other well-recognized infections of two weeks old chicks. In late January 2018, several live and dead chicks with a history of an unusual increase in mortality showing no clinical signs but sudden dead were referred to the poultry clinic of Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Urmia University, Urmia, Iran. General routine postmortem examination revealed color changes (light green to dark green color) in the wall of proventriculus together with some degrees of congestion in the lungs and liver of the dead chicks. Microbiology tests revealed that the causative agent was strain O142 and histopathological examination indicated that the color changing of the organ was due to necrosis of glandular epithelium with locally extensive or diffuse hypercellularity by lymphocytes and macrophages with hemorrhages. In conclusion, black proventriculus due to strain O142 was responsible for the sudden death of young chicks and based on antibiogram, selective antibiotics should be used for the treatment of the affected flocks.
PubMed: 33643598
DOI: 10.30466/vrf.2020.119777.2830 -
Toxins Feb 2021The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of mycotoxin binders in reducing the adverse effects of co-occurring dietary aflatoxin B (AFB), deoxynivalenol...
The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of mycotoxin binders in reducing the adverse effects of co-occurring dietary aflatoxin B (AFB), deoxynivalenol (DON) and ochratoxin A (OTA) on laying hens. Three hundred and sixty 26-week-old Roman laying hens were randomly allocated into four experimental groups with 10 replicates of nine birds each. The four groups received either a basal diet (BD; Control), a BD supplemented with 0.15 mg/kg AFB + 1.5 mg/kg DON + 0.12 mg/kg OTA (Toxins), a BD + Toxins with Toxo-HP binder (Toxins + HP), or a BD + Toxins with TOXO XL binder (Toxins + XL) for 12 weeks. Compared to the control, dietary supplementation of mycotoxins decreased ( < 0.10) total feed intake, total egg weight, and egg-laying rate, but increased feed/egg ratio by 2.5-6.1% and mortality during various experimental periods. These alterations induced by mycotoxins were alleviated by supplementation with both TOXO HP and XL binders ( < 0.10). Furthermore, dietary mycotoxins reduced ( < 0.05) eggshell strength by 12.3% and caused an accumulation of 249 μg/kg of DON in eggs at week 12, while dietary supplementation with TOXO HP or XL mitigated DON-induced changes on eggshell strength and prevented accumulation of DON in eggs ( < 0.05). Moreover, dietary mycotoxins increased relative liver weight, but decreased spleen and proventriculus relative weights by 11.6-22.4% ( < 0.05). Mycotoxin exposure also increased alanine aminotransferase activity and reduced immunoglobulin (Ig) A, IgM, and IgG concentrations in serum by 9.2-26.1% ( < 0.05). Additionally, mycotoxin exposure induced histopathological damage and reduced villus height, villus height/crypt depth, and crypt depth in duodenum, jejunum and (or) ileum ( < 0.05). Notably, most of these histological changes were mitigated by supplementation with both TOXO HP and XL ( < 0.05). In conclusion, the present study demonstrated that the mycotoxin binders TOXO HP and XL can help to mitigate the combined effects of AFB, DON, and OTA on laying hen performance, egg quality, and health.
Topics: Aflatoxin B1; Animal Feed; Animal Husbandry; Animals; Bentonite; Cell Wall; Chickens; Dietary Supplements; Eggs; Female; Food Microbiology; Ochratoxins; Trichothecenes; Yeasts
PubMed: 33671260
DOI: 10.3390/toxins13020156 -
Poultry Science Oct 2019In a 2 × 2 × 2 factorial design, the effects of dietary non-phytate phosphorus (NPP) levels, 0.17% (low) and 0.33% (moderate), diet moisture (dry and wet), and diet...
The effects of coarse and wet feeding on performance parameters, gastrointestinal tract and tibia traits, and digesta phytase activity in egg-type pullets, either fed a low or moderate phosphorus diet.
In a 2 × 2 × 2 factorial design, the effects of dietary non-phytate phosphorus (NPP) levels, 0.17% (low) and 0.33% (moderate), diet moisture (dry and wet), and diet particle size (coarse and fine), were studied on egg production, characteristics of gastrointestinal tract (GIT) and tibia, digesta pH, and phytase activity in layer pullets (16 to 28 wk of age). The low NPP diet increased average daily water intake (ADWI) to ADFI ratio (4.2%) from 16 to 17 wk, but decreased this ratio (2.8%) from 23 to 27 wk. It decreased ADFI (1.5%) and egg mass production (3.8%) from 19 to 22 wk. It decreased egg weight (0.29 g) and ADWI (2.1%) from 23 to 27 wk. At 22 wk, the GIT relative empty organ weights were (g/kg BW) higher for proventriculus + gizzard (0.96), duodeneum (0.94), and jejunum + ileum (1.95) with the low vs. moderate NPP diet. The low NPP diet decreased digesta phytase activity in crop and proventriculus+gizzard at 28 wk. The wet diet increased ADFI, ADWI, and ADWI/ADFI ratio from 16 to 27 wk, egg mass production (3.0%) from 19 to 22 wk, and egg weight (0.45 g) from 23 to 27 wk. The wet diet also increased digesta phytase activity in proventriculus+gizzard. The coarse diet decreased ADFI from 19 to 22 wk (1.7%) and 23 to 27 wk (1.2%). The coarse diet caused reduced egg mass production (2.6%) from 23 to 27 wk. Egg shell breaking strength was increased on the coarse diet (0.9 Newton). The coarse diet increased ADWI/ADFI ratio from 16 to 27 wk, and increased relative gizzard weight by 1.95 and 0.81 g/kg BW at 22 and 28 wk, respectively. The coarse diet increased jejunal/ileal pH with 0.16 units at 28 wk. None of the tested parameters affected tibia characteristics. It was concluded that a low NPP diet did not clearly affect the studied parameters. The wet diet increased ADFI, ADWI, and egg production. The coarse diet increased ADWI, egg shell breaking strength, relative gizzard weight, and reduced ADFI and egg production.
Topics: 6-Phytase; Animal Feed; Animals; Chickens; Diet; Feces; Female; Gastrointestinal Tract; Phosphorus; Phosphorus, Dietary; Tibia
PubMed: 31329980
DOI: 10.3382/ps/pez187 -
BMC Zoology Dec 2022Gallinula chloropus (Linnaeus, 1758) is a wild aquatic omnivorous bird characterized by a marked resistance to harsh environmental conditions and a worldwide...
BACKGROUND
Gallinula chloropus (Linnaeus, 1758) is a wild aquatic omnivorous bird characterized by a marked resistance to harsh environmental conditions and a worldwide distribution. In this study, anatomical, morphometrical, histochemical, and immunohistochemical techniques were employed to study the structure of the gastrointestinal tract of Gallinula chloropus.
RESULTS
The esophagus appeared tubular with no distinct crop. Both superficial (SPG) and deep (DPG) proventricular glands were present. The DPG filled about two-thirds of the total wall thickness. Histochemically, the mucosubstances revealed mixed alcian blue-PAS positive reactions. They were mainly localized in the acini of the esophageal glands and SPG, gastric surface epithelium, duct system of DPG, and intestinal goblet cells. The highest number of goblet cells per every 1 mm of the intestinal mucosa was seen within the ileum and rectum, 2555 ± 468 and 2607 ± 653 respectively. Notably, glucagon immunoreactive (IR) cells were abundant in the mucosa of the small and large intestines and the proventriculus, while somatostatin IR cells were concentrated within the acini of the DPG. IR cells for the mitosis marker phospho-histone H3 (PHH3) were highest within the entire intestinal crypts and mucosa-associated lymphoid tissues (MALT). In contrast, cells IR for the apoptosis marker C.CASP3 were remarkable in epithelial cells at the tips of intestinal villi and in MALT, reflecting the dynamic nature of the latter mentioned structures.
CONCLUSIONS
The findings of the present study advance our knowledge of the gross and microscopic anatomy of the gastrointestinal tract in wild birds and could help to enhance the productivity of Aves via improving gut health.
PubMed: 37170387
DOI: 10.1186/s40850-022-00161-6 -
Royal Society Open Science Jan 2020The gastrointestinal tract (GIT) consists of connected structures that vary in function and physiology, and different GIT sections potentially provide different habitats...
The gastrointestinal tract (GIT) consists of connected structures that vary in function and physiology, and different GIT sections potentially provide different habitats for microorganisms. Birds possess unique GIT structures, including the oesophagus, proventriculus, gizzard, small intestine, caeca and large intestine. To understand birds as hosts of microbial ecosystems, we characterized the microbial communities in six sections of the GIT of two shorebird species, the Dunlin and Semipalmated Sandpiper, identified potential host species effects on the GIT microbiome and used microbial source tracking to determine microbial origin throughout the GIT. The upper three GIT sections had higher alpha diversity and genus richness compared to the lower sections, and microbial communities in the upper GIT showed no clustering. The proventriculus and gizzard microbiomes primarily originated from upstream sections, while the majority of the large intestine microbiome originated from the caeca. The heterogeneity of the GIT sections shown in our study urges caution in equating data from faeces or a single GIT component to the entire GIT microbiome but confirms that ecologically similar species may share many attributes in GIT microbiomes.
PubMed: 32218980
DOI: 10.1098/rsos.191609 -
Animals : An Open Access Journal From... Apr 2023The Cantabrian capercaillie () is one of the most severely threatened subspecies of capercaillie. Its current population range is restricted to a small area of the...
The Cantabrian capercaillie () is one of the most severely threatened subspecies of capercaillie. Its current population range is restricted to a small area of the Cantabrian Mountains (northwestern Spain), with only around 200 individuals remaining. As part of the national strategy for the conservation of the subspecies, the Cantabrian capercaillie Captive Breeding Center of Sobrescobio opened in 2009. Here, we use the information provided by the necropsies performed in this facility on 29 individuals (11 males, 13 females and 5 undetermined; 16 chicks and 13 adults) in order to describe the main mortality causes of captive-bred Cantabrian capercaillies. After necropsy, tissue samples were taken for evaluation using standard methods in histology and microbiology. The majority of the captive animals (18/29, 62.07%) died due to infectious diseases, mainly due to , , or infection. The remaining 11 animals died due to stress-related processes (i.e., rupture of the heart apex and cardiomyopathy or neurogenic shock) (8/29, 27.59%), duodenal obstruction and coelomitis (1/29, 3.45%), perforation of the proventriculus and heart with a briar branch (1/29, 3.45%) or euthanasia due to a valgus leg deformity that prevented proper animal welfare (1/29, 3.45%). Young animals (i.e., younger than 2 months) died mainly due to infectious diseases (14/16, 87.5%), while stress-related causes were responsible for most adult deaths (7/13, 53.85%). We additionally report that two free-ranging adult males died due to exertional myopathy. This study provides relevant information for reducing mortality in captive capercaillies and improving both living conditions in captivity and the adaptation of these animals to the wild.
PubMed: 37048511
DOI: 10.3390/ani13071255