Microbiota populations and short-chain fatty acids production in cecum of immunosuppressed broilers consuming diets containing γ-irradiated Astragalus polysaccharides

Abstract

This study was designed to evaluate the effects of γ-irradiated Astragalus polysaccharides ( IAPS ) on growth performance, cecal microbiota populations, and concentrations of cecal short-chain fatty acids of immunosuppressed broilers. A total of 144 one-day-old broiler chicks were randomly assigned into 3 groups: nontreated group (control), cyclophosphamide ( CPM )-treated groups fed either a basal diet or the diets containing 900 mg/kg IAPS, respectively. On day 16, 18, and 20, broilers in the control group were intramuscularly injected with 0.5 mL sterilized saline (0.75%, wt/vol), and those in the CPM and IAPS groups were intramuscularly injected with 0.5 mL CPM (40 mg/kg of BW). The trial lasted 21 d. Compared with the control group, CPM treatment decreased the broiler average daily gain ( ADG ) and feed intake ( P < 0.05) but did not affect the overall microbial diversity and compositions, as well as the concentrations of cecal acetate, propionate, and butyrate in cecum of broilers ( P > 0.05). Dietary IAPS supplementation increased broiler ADG, Shannon index, and decreased Simpson index ( P < 0.05). Specifically, broilers fed diets containing IAPS showed lower abundances of Faecalibacterium , Bacteroides, and Butyricicoccus and higher proportions of Ruminococcaceae UCG-014 , Negativibacillus , Shuttleworthia , Sellimonas, and Mollicutes RF39_norank, respectively ( P < 0.05). The IAPS treatment also increased butyrate concentration ( P < 0.05) and tended to elevate acetate concentration ( P = 0.052) in cecal digesta. The results indicated that IAPS are effective in increasing the cecal beneficial bacteria and short-chain fatty acids production, contributing to improvement in the growth performance of immunosuppressive broilers. These findings may expand our knowledge about the function of modified Astragalus polysaccharides in broiler chickens.

Polysaccharides derived from Astragalus membranaceus and Glycyrrhiza uralensis improve growth performance of broilers by enhancing intestinal health and modulating gut microbiota

“…The result of beta diversity revealed that microbiota structure in the APS and GPS group was clearly distinguished from that of the control group. The taxonomical composition analysis showed that Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes were the 2 most dominant phyla of the cecum in broilers, which was in line with previous studies (Xiang et al, 2020; Liu et al, 2021b ). The proportion of Firmicute s to Bacteroidetes is significantly associated with the capacity for energy harvest by host ( Kasai et al, 2015 ).…”

Effects of Dietary Astragalus Polysaccharide Supplementation on the Th17/Treg Balance and the Gut Microbiota of Broiler Chickens Challenged With Necrotic Enteritis

“…The addition of γ-irradiated Astragalus polysaccharide (IAPS) to the diet of immunosuppressive broilers significantly increased the caecal microbial α diversity. After adding IAPS to broiler diets, there were lower proportions of Faecalibacterium , Bacteroides , and Butyricicoccus and higher proportions of Ruminococcaceae UCG-014 , Negativibacillus , Shuttleworthia , Sellimonas and Lamina RF39_norank ( 15 ). The study found that adding 0.5% crude Astragalus to the hen’s diet significantly increased Lactobacillus in faeces and significantly reduced the relative abundance of Romboutsia sp ( 16 )..…”

The combined impact of xylo-oligosaccharides and gamma-irradiated Astragalus polysaccharides on growth performance and intestinal mucosal barrier function of broilers

“…More importantly, in vivo and in vitro studies have shown that gamma-irradiated APS ( IAPS ) have a higher immunomodulatory activity than natural APS ( Ren et al., 2018 ; Li et al., 2019a , 2019b ). Recently, Liu et al. (2020a) reported that dietary IAPS was effective in increasing the cecal beneficial bacteria and SCFA production of immunosuppressive broilers.…”