Effect of dietary stevioside supplementation on growth performance, nutrient digestibility, serum parameters, and intestinal microflora in broilers

Traditional Chinese Medicine in Osteoporosis Intervention and the Related Regulatory Mechanism of Gut Microbiome

The gut microbiome (GM) has become a crucial factor that can affect the progression of osteoporosis. A number of studies have demonstrated the impact of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) on GM and bone metabolism. In this review, we summarize the potential mechanisms of the relationship between osteoporosis and GM disorder and introduce several natural Chinese medicines that exert anti-osteoporosis effects by modulating the GM. It is underlined that, through the provision of the microbial associated molecular pattern (MAMP), the GM causes inflammatory reactions and alterations in the Treg-Th17 balance and ultimately leads to changes in bone mass. Serotonin and many hormones, especially estrogen, may play a crucial role in the interaction of the GM with bone metabolism. Additionally, the GM may affect the absorption of specific nutrients in the intestine, particularly minerals like calcium, magnesium, and phosphorus. Several natural Chinese herbs, such as Sambucus Williamsii, Achyranthes bidentata Blume, Pleurotus ostreatus and Ganoderma lucidum mushrooms, Pueraria Lobata, and Agaricus blazei Murill have exhibited anti-osteoporosis effects through regulating the distribution and metabolism of the GM. These herbs may increase the abundance of Firmicutes, decrease the abundance of Bacteroides, promote the GM to produce more SCFAs, modulate the immune response caused by harmful bacteria, and increase the proportion of Treg-Th17 to indirectly affect bone metabolism. Moreover, gut-derived 5-HT is an important target for TCM to prevent osteoporosis via the gut-bone axis. Puerarin could prevent osteoporosis by improving intestinal mucosal integrity and decrease systemic inflammation caused by estrogen deficiency.

Stevioside Improves Antioxidant Capacity and Intestinal Barrier Function while Attenuating Inflammation and Apoptosis by Regulating the NF-κB/MAPK Pathways in Diquat-Induced Oxidative Stress of IPEC-J2 Cells

As a natural sweetener, stevioside is extracted from Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni and possesses potent antioxidant activity. However, little information is known about its protective role in maintaining the intestinal epithelial cells health under oxidative stress. The aim of this study was to investigate the protective effects and underlying mechanisms of stevioside on alleviating inflammation, apoptosis, and improving antioxidant capacity in intestinal porcine epithelial cells (IPEC-J2) under oxidative stress by diquat. The results demonstrated that the pretreatment with stevioside (250 μM) for 6 h increased cell viability and proliferation and prevented apoptosis induced by diquat at 1000 μM for 6 h in IPEC-J2 cells, compared with the diquat alone-treated cells. Importantly, stevioside pretreatment significantly reduced ROS and MDA production as well as upregulated T-SOD, CAT, and GSH-Px activity. Moreover, it also decreased cell permeability and improved intestinal barrier functions by significantly upregulating the tight junction protein abundances of claudin-1, occludin, and ZO-1. At the same time, stevioside significantly down-regulated the secretion and gene expression of IL-6, IL-8, and TNF-α and decreased the phosphorylation levels of NF-κB, IκB, and ERK1/2 compared with the diquat alone group. Taken together, this study demonstrated that stevioside alleviated diquat-stimulated cytotoxicity, inflammation, and apoptosis in IPEC-J2 cells, protecting cellular barrier integrity and mitigating oxidative stress by interfering with the NF-κB and MAPK signaling pathways.

Gut microbiome and serum metabolome analyses identify biomarkers associated with sexual maturity in quails

Increasing evidence indicates that the gut microbiome plays an important role in host aging and sexual maturity. However, the gut microbial taxa associated with sexual maturity in quails are unknown. This study used shotgun metagenomic sequencing to identify bacterial taxa associated with sexual maturity in d 20 and d 70 quails. We found that 17 bacterial species and 67 metagenome-assembled genomes (e.g., Bacteroides spp. and Enterococcus spp.) significantly differed between the d 20 and d 70 groups, including 5 bacterial species (e.g., Enterococcus faecalis) enriched in the d 20 group and 12 bacterial species (e.g., Christensenella massiliensis, Clostridium sp. CAG:217, and Bacteroides neonati) which had high abundances in the d 70 group. The bacterial species enriched in d 20 or d 70 were key biomarkers distinguishing sexual maturity and significantly correlated with the shifts in the functional capacities of the gut microbiome. Untargeted serum metabolome analysis revealed that 5 metabolites (e.g., nicotinamide riboside) were enriched in the d 20 group, and 6 metabolites (e.g., D-ribose, stevioside, and barbituric acid) were enriched in the d 70 group. Furthermore, metabolites with high abundances in the d 20 group were significantly enriched for the KEGG pathways of arginine biosynthesis, nicotinate and nicotinamide metabolism, and lysine degradation. However, glutathione metabolism and valine, leucine and isoleucine biosynthesis were enriched in high-abundance metabolites from the d 70 group. These results provide important insights into the effects of gut microbiome and host metabolism on quail sexual maturity.

Maternal stevioside supplementation improves intestinal immune function of chicken offspring potentially via modulating gut microbiota and down-regulating the promoter methylation level of suppressor of cytokine signaling 1 (SOCS1)

The intestinal immune function of chickens is limited during the early growing stage. Maternal nutritional intervention has been suggested to affect the innate immunity of offspring. The present study aimed to investigate the effects of maternal stevioside supplementation on the intestinal immune function of chicken offspring. A total of 120 Jinmao yellow-feathered breeder hens were fed a basal diet or a diet supplemented with 250 mg/kg stevioside for 5 weeks. During the last week, 200 breeding eggs from each group were collected for incubation. After hatching, 80 male offspring (40 chickens from each group) were randomly selected and fed the same basal diet for 28 d. In addition, 90 well-shaped fertile eggs of non-treated breeder hens were incubated for the in ovo injection experiment. Steviol dissolved in 20% glycerol was injected at 7 d of incubation. The results showed that maternal stevioside supplementation could improve embryonic development, jejunal integrity and proliferation in the jejunal crypt (P < 0.05). Maternal stevioside supplementation could also increase the innate transcription levels of cytokines and endotoxin tolerance-related factors in the jejunum of chicken offspring (P < 0.05). At 28 d of age, the offspring following maternal stevioside supplementation exhibited higher jejunal secretory immunoglobulin A and serum interferons levels (P < 0.05). A higher abundance of Lactobacillales induced by maternal stevioside supplementation was positively correlated with intestinal immune-related factors (P < 0.05). The in ovo injection with steviol did not alter either embryonic development or intestinal immune function of hatching chickens (P > 0.05). Furthermore, maternal stevioside supplementation could induce hypo-methylation on the promoter region of suppressor of cytokine signaling 1 (SOCS1). In conclusion, maternal stevioside supplementation could improve the intestinal immune function of chicken offspring potentially via modulating the gut microbiota and down-regulating the promoter methylation level of SOCS1.

Galacto-oligosaccharides and Xylo-oligosaccharides Affect Meat Flavor by Altering the Cecal Microbiome, Metabolome, and Transcriptome of Chickens

Studies have shown that prebiotics can affect meat quality; however, the underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood. This study aimed to investigate whether prebiotics affect the flavor of chicken meat via the gut microbiome and metabolome. The gut content was collected from chickens fed with or without prebiotics (galacto-oligosaccharides or xylo-oligosaccharides) and subjected to microbiome and metabolome analyses, whereas transcriptome sequencing was performed using chicken breast. Prebiotic supplementation yielded a slight improvement that was not statistically significant in the growth and production performance of chickens. Moreover, treatment with prebiotics promoted fat synthesis and starch hydrolysis, thus increasing meat flavor by enhancing lipase and α-amylase activity in the blood of broiler chickens. The prebiotics altered the proportions of microbiota in the gut at different levels, especially microbiota in the phyla Bacteroidetes and Firmicutes, such as members of the Alistipes, Bacteroides, and Faecalibacterium genera. Furthermore, the prebiotics altered the content of cecal metabolites related to flavor substances, including 8 types of lysophosphatidylcholine (lysoPC) and 4 types of amino acid. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) induced by prebiotics were significantly involved in fatty acid accumulation processes, such as lipolysis in adipocytes and the adipocytokine signaling pathway. Changes in gut microbiota were correlated with metabolites, for example, Bacteroidetes and Firmicutes were positively and negatively correlated with lysoPC, respectively. Finally, DEGs interacted with cecal metabolites, especially meat-flavor-related amino acids and their derivatives. The findings of this study integrated and incorporated associations among the gut microbiota, metabolites, and transcriptome, which suggests that prebiotics affect the flavor of chicken meat.

Drinking Water Supplemented with Acidifiers Improves the Growth Performance of Weaned Pigs and Potentially Regulates Antioxidant Capacity, Immunity, and Gastrointestinal Microbiota Diversity

This study evaluated the potential effects of adding acidifiers to the drinking water on the growth performance, complete blood count, antioxidant indicators, and diversity of gastrointestinal microbiota for weaned pigs. A total of 400 weaned pigs were randomly divided into four treatments. Pigs were fed the same basal diet and given either water (no acidifier was added, control) or water plus blends of different formulas of acidifiers (acidifier A1, A2, or A3) for 35 days. On d 18 and 35 of the experimental period, 64 pigs (four pigs per pen) were randomly selected to collect blood for a CBC test (n = 128) and an antioxidant indicators test (n = 128); 24 pigs (six pigs per group) were randomly selected to collect fresh feces (n = 48) from the rectum for 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Compared to the control, supplementing the drinking water with acidifiers improved the growth performance and survival rate of weaned pigs. Acidifier groups also increased serum catalase (CAT) and total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC) activities, while also displaying a decreased malondialdehyde (MDA) concentration compared to the control. The relative abundance of Firmicutes in the acidifier A1 group was greater than that in the control group (p < 0.05) on d 35; the relative abundance of Lactobacillus in the acidifier A1 group was greater than that in the control group (p < 0.05) on d 18 and 35. The microbial species Subdoligranulum or Ruminococcaceae_UCG-005 had significantly positive correlations with ADG and ADFI or with serum antioxidant indicators, respectively. These findings suggest that supplementing the drinking water with an acidifier has a potential as an antioxidant, which was reflected in the improvement of growth performance, immunity, antioxidant capacity, and intestinal flora.

Effects of synbiotic on growth, digestibility, immune and antioxidant performance in broilers

The overuse of in-feed antibiotics has been associated with serious issues, including the developing of antibiotic-resistant pathogens and causing drug residues in poultry products. To date, many countries have restricted the use of growth-promoting antibiotics in food animals, resulting in the increased need for effective alternatives to in-feed antibiotic. Synbiotics, which are composed of probiotics and prebiotics, have been shown to act synergistically when applied simultaneously. Thus, this study investigated the effects of a synbiotic, composed of microencapsulated Lactobacillus plantarum (MLP) and fructooligosaccharide (FOS), on growth, immune and antioxidant parameters, and digestibility of calcium and phosphorus in broilers. A total of 168 newly hatched male broilers were randomly allotted to three dietary groups (n = 7): (1) a corn-soybean meal basal diet (CON); (2) basal diet + synbiotic (SYN); and (3) basal diet + aureomycin (ANT). Compared with the CON, chickens had greater average daily gain and digestibility of calcium and phosphorus in the SYN group (P < 0.05). In the SYN and ANT group, serum IgA, IgG, and IL-10 levels were higher, while the serum TNF-α, IL-2, and IL-6 levels were reduced (P < 0.05) compared to CON. Compared with CON, the level of serum malondialdehyde was lower (P < 0.05) and SOD level was higher (P < 0.05) in either SYN or ANT group. No significant differences in populations of Escherichia coli were seen in chickens among the three groups, whereas, the populations of Lactobacillus were higher (P < 0.05) in chickens in the SYN group compared with those in CON and ANT groups. Taken together, the addition of SYN, consisting of MLP and FOS, had benefits on growth, immune and antioxidant parameters, and digestibility of calcium and phosphorus, indicating its potential to serve as a substitute for antibiotics in broiler feeding.

Maternal stevioside supplementation ameliorates intestinal mucosal damage and modulates gut microbiota in chicken offspring challenged with lipopolysaccharide

Our previous study showed that dietary stevioside supplementation could alleviate intestinal mucosal damage induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) through its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects in broiler chickens. However, it remains unknown whether feeding stevioside to breeder hens could exert similar biological functions in their offspring. The present study aimed to investigate whether maternal dietary stevioside supplementation could prevent LPS-induced intestinal mucosal damage and alteration of gut microbiota in chicken offspring. A total of 120 Jinmao yellow-feathered breeder hens were fed a basal diet (CON) or a 250 mg kg^-1 stevioside-supplemented diet (STE) for 5 weeks before collecting their eggs. After hatching, 160 male offspring (80 chickens from each group) were randomly selected and divided into four treatment groups: (1) the offspring of hens fed a basal diet (CON); (2) the offspring of hens fed a stevioside-supplemented diet (STE); (3) the CON group challenged with LPS (LPS); and (4) the STE group challenged with LPS (LSTE). The results showed that maternal stevioside supplementation increased the hatching weight and improved the intestinal morphology. LPS challenge significantly decreased the terminal body weight and the concentrations of serum triglyceride (TG) and glucose (GLU) of the chicken offspring. Maternal stevioside supplementation protected against LPS-induced morphological damage, goblet cell impairment, intestinal apoptosis, and gene expression alteration. In addition, sequence analysis of 16S rRNA gene showed that maternal stevioside supplementation could prevent the impairment of bacterial diversity in LPS-challenged chicken offspring. Moreover, the increased abundance of Lactobacillus caused by maternal stevioside supplementation had a significant negative correlation with the expression of intestinal inflammatory cytokines. In conclusion, maternal stevioside supplementation could ameliorate intestinal mucosal damage and modulate gut microbiota in chicken offspring challenged with LPS.

Effects of essential oil on growth performance, digestibility, immunity, and intestinal health in broilers

Essential oils (EO) are concentrated hydrophobic liquids containing volatile aromatic compounds obtained from plants, which have properties as withdrawn antibiotic growth promoters. The objective of this study was to explore the effects of EO on growth performance, digestibility, immunity and intestinal health in broilers. A total of 500 1-day-old Arbor Acre broilers were randomly put into five groups with 10 replicate cages containing 10 birds each. Birds in the 5 groups were fed a basal diet (CON), and basal diet with 50, 100, 200 or 400 mg/kg EO (EO0.5, EO1, EO2 and EO4) for 42 d respectively. Birds were euthanized at 21d and 42 d, blood and tissue samples were collected. In the study, the digestibility of DM, GE and EE in groups with EO supplementation were significantly increased compared with CON group (P < 0.05). However, only EO2 and EO4 significantly increased the digestibility of CP compared with CON group (P < 0.05). In contrast to CON group, EO0.5 and EO1 in jejunum at 21 d, and EO1 in jejunum at 42 d markedly increased the activity of sucrase (P < 0.05). In addition, the level of SOD of EO2 and EO4 in serum at 21 d was significantly increased compared with CON group (P < 0.05). What's more, the concentration of intestinal mucosa SIgA in jejunum and ileum at 21 d of groups with EO supplementation was significantly increased compared with CON group (P < 0.05). Moreover, V/C in jejunum at 21 d of groups with EO supplementation, CD in jejunum at 42 d was also significantly increased to compare with CON group (P < 0.05). Furthermore, the expression levels of critical genes associated with nutrient transportation (i.e., GLUT2, SGLT1, SLC38A, SLC79A and SLC27A4) and barrier function (TJP1) were quadratically and linearly up-regulated in jejunum and ileum with EO supplementation (P < 0.05). These results suggest that EO has a positive impact on growth, immunity and intestinal health in broilers, and 200 mg/kg of EO was recommended in broiler diet.

Effect of dietary stevia-based sweetener on body weight and humoral immune response of broiler chickens

Background and Aim:

Steviol glycosides extracted from the leaves of Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni have been of much consideration recently because of their beneficial effects on health, raising the possibilities for improving farm animals’ health. Although some studies on stevia’s dietary effect on body weight gain are available, few studies have been conducted to evaluate stevioside supplementation on immune response in broilers. This experiment aimed to analyze how a stevia-based sweetener can affect broiler chickens’ growth performance and humoral response.

Materials and Methods:

In this experiment, one hundred and twenty 1-day-old Cobb-line broiler chicks fed with commercial starter/grower diets were included in three groups and supplemented with stevia-based sweetener at levels 0, 80, and 160 ppm, respectively. Chickens were weighed on day 0 and every 7 days for the next 6 weeks. Chicks were then immunized on days 10 and 24 with a Newcastle and infectious bronchitis vaccine and blood sampled on days 7, 24, and 35. Serologic assays were performed to detect specific antibody levels.

Results:

The body weight means and body weight gain on day 42 were found to be significantly higher in birds from the group fed with 80 ppm of stevia-based sweetener than those in the control group and slightly higher than those in the group supplemented with 160 ppm of stevia-based sweetener. Likewise, on day 35, antibodies against the Newcastle disease virus were higher in the treatment groups. Immune response to infectious bronchitis virus vaccination was not statistically different among the three groups through the experiment.

Conclusion:

Stevia-based sweetener at 80 ppm in commercial-based diets improved body weight gain and immune response in broiler chickens at the market age.

Dietary stevioside supplementation increases feed intake by altering the hypothalamic transcriptome profile and gut microbiota in broiler chickens

BACKGROUND

Stevioside (STE) is a widely used sweetener. Despite the fact that chickens are insensitive to sweetness, dietary STE supplementation could increase the feed intake of broiler chickens. Stevioside might regulate the feeding behavior through functional mechanisms other than its high-potency sweetness. The present study was aimed to elucidate the potential sweetness-independent mechanism of an STE-induced orexigenic effect using the broiler chicken and considering the hypothalamic transcriptome profile and gut microbiome.

RESULTS

The analysis of RNA-Seq identified 398 differently expressed genes (160 up-regulated and 238 down-regulated) in the hypothalamus of the STE-supplemented group compared with the control group. Cluster analysis revealed several appetite-related genes were differentially expressed, including NPY, NPY5R, TSHB, NMU, TPH2, and DDC. The analysis of 16S rRNA sequencing data also indicated that dietary STE supplementation increased the relative abundance of Lactobacillales, Bacilli, Lactobacillus, and Lactobacillaceae. Meanwhile, the proportion of Ruminococcaceae, Lachnospiraceae, Clostridia, and Clostridiales was decreased after dietary supplementation with STE.

CONCLUSION

Dietary STE supplementation promoted feed intake through the regulation of the hypothalamic neuroactive ligand-receptor interaction pathway and the alteration of intestinal microbiota composition. This study provides valuable information about the sweetness-independent mechanism of the STE-induced orexigenic effect using the broiler chicken (which is insensitive to sweetness) as the animal model. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry.

Stevioside Activates AMPK to Suppress Inflammation in Macrophages and Protects Mice from LPS-Induced Lethal Shock

Stevioside, a diterpenoid glycoside, is widely used as a natural sweetener; meanwhile, it has been proven to possess various pharmacological properties as well. However, until now there were no comprehensive evaluations focused on the anti-inflammatory activity of stevioside. Thus, the anti-inflammatory activities of stevioside, both in macrophages (RAW 264.7 cells, THP-1 cells, and mouse peritoneal macrophages) and in mice, were extensively investigated for the potential application of stevioside as a novel anti-inflammatory agent. The results showed that stevioside was capable of down-regulating lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced expression and production of pro-inflammatory cytokines and mediators in macrophages from different sources, such as IL-6, TNF-α, IL-1β, iNOS/NO, COX2, and HMGB1, whereas it up-regulated the anti-inflammatory cytokines IL-10 and TGF-β1. Further investigation showed that stevioside could activate the AMPK -mediated inhibition of IRF5 and NF-κB pathways. Similarly, in mice with LPS-induced lethal shock, stevioside inhibited release of pro-inflammatory factors, enhanced production of IL-10, and increased the survival rate of mice. More importantly, stevioside was also shown to activate AMPK in the periphery blood mononuclear cells of mice. Together, these results indicated that stevioside could significantly attenuate LPS-induced inflammatory responses both in vitro and in vivo through regulating several signaling pathways. These findings further strengthened the evidence that stevioside may be developed into a therapeutic agent against inflammatory diseases.

Effects of dietary sweeteners supplementation on growth performance, serum biochemicals, and jejunal physiological functions of broiler chickens

The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of dietary 3 kinds of sweeteners supplementation on growth performance, serum biochemicals, and jejunal physiological functions of broiler chickens for 21 D. A total of one hundred ninety-two 1-day-old male Ross 308 broiler chicks were randomly divided into 4 treatments with 6 replicates for each treatment. The treatments were basal diet (CON), a basal diet supplemented with 250 mg/kg stevioside (STE), a basal diet supplemented with 100 mg/kg sucralose (SUC), and a basal diet supplemented with 600 mg/kg saccharin sodium (SAC). All birds were housed in 3-level battery cages. The results showed that dietary STE supplementation increased (P < 0.05) growth performance, serum total protein, serum albumin, and jejunal antioxidant capacity of broiler chickens. Both SUC and SAC supplementation decreased (P < 0.05) serum total protein and albumin. Dietary SAC supplementation impaired the intestinal integrity, permeability, and mucus layer of the jejunum in broiler chickens. In addition, SAC supplementation elevated (P < 0.05) the transcription expression level of jejunal bitter taste receptors and induced excessive jejunal apoptosis. Our data suggest that STE could be potentially applied as a growth-promoting and antioxidant feed additive in broiler chickens. Whereas, dietary supplementation with high level SAC has side-effects on the jejunal physiological functions of broiler chickens.

Dietary Stevioside Supplementation Alleviates Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Intestinal Mucosal Damage through Anti-Inflammatory and Antioxidant Effects in Broiler Chickens

The study was conducted to investigate the effects of dietary stevioside (STE) supplementation on the lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced intestinal mucosal damage of broiler chickens. A total of 192 one-day-old male Ross 308 broiler chicks were randomly divided into four treatments: (1) basal diet (CON); (2) basal diet supplemented with 250 mg/kg stevioside (STE); (3) basal diet + LPS-challenge (LPS); (4) basal diet supplemented with 250 mg/kg stevioside + LPS-challenge (LPS + STE). LPS-challenged groups received an intraperitoneal injection of LPS at 17, 19 and 21 d, whereas the CON and STE groups received a saline injection. The results showed that dietary STE supplementation normalized LPS-induced changes in protein expression of p-NF-κB and p-IκBα, mRNA expression of inflammatory genes (TLR4, NF-κB, and IFN-γ), tight junction-related genes (CLDN2, OCLN, and ZO-1), and antioxidant genes (Nrf2 and HO-1). LPS-induced decreases in serum diamine oxidase (DAO) level, villus height-to-crypt depth ratio, apoptotic index, and protein expression of proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) were reversed with dietary STE supplementation. Additionally, STE supplementation ameliorated the redox damage by reducing malondialdehyde (MDA) content and increasing total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC) and antioxidant enzyme activity. In conclusion, dietary stevioside supplementation could alleviate LPS-induced intestinal mucosal damage through anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects in broiler chickens.