Abstract
Simple SummaryIn the poultry industry, several studies demonstrate the positive effects of probiotic administration on induction of intestinal gene expression, physiology, immunology, morphology and mucus composition. The mucus layer covers the epithelium of the gastrointestinal mucosa, protects it against physical and chemical injuries caused by food, microbes adhesion, and microbial metabolites, promotes the gut content elimination and modulates water and electrolyte absorption. Mucins are glycoproteins that play a key role in constituting the intestinal mucus layer, and their production takes place in the goblet cells. This study examined the effects of the multi-strain probiotic Slab51® on the morphology and carbohydrate composition of intestinal glycoproteins of 40 guineafowl (Numida meleagris), averagely weighing 110 ± 0.99 g, during a grow-out cycle that lasted 120 days. Samples from different anatomical tracts of intestine, collected after slaughtering, were processed for morphological, morphometric, conventional and lectin glycohistochemical studies. Compared with control samples, probiotic group revealed significant increase in morphological parameters and goblet cells expression per villus in all investigated tracts as well as region-specific changes in carbohydrate composition of glycoproteins of the mucus layer.Probiotics have become highly recognized as supplements for poultry.Since gut health can be considered synonymous withanimal health, the effects of probiotic Slab51® on the morphology and the glycan composition of guineafowlintestine were examined. The probiotics were added in drinking water (2 × 1011 UFC/L) throughout the grow-out cycle.Birds were individually weighed andslaughtered after four months. Samples from the duodenum, ileum and caecum were collected and processed for morphological, morphometric, conventional and lectin glycohistochemical studies.The results were analyzed for statistical significance by Student’s t test. Compared with control samples, probiotic group revealed (1) significant increase in villus height (p < 0.001 in duodenum and ileum; p < 0.05 in caecum), crypt depth (p < 0.001 in duodenum and caecum; p < 0.05 in ileum) and goblet cells (GCs) per villus (p < 0.001) in all investigated tracts; (2) increase in galactoseβl,3N-acetylgalacyosamine(Galβl,3GalNAc)terminating O-glycans and αl,2-fucosylated glycans secretory GCs in the duodenum; (3) increase in α2,6-sialoglycans and high-mannose N-linked glycans secretory GCs but reduction in GCs-secreting sulfoglycans in the ileum; (4) increase in Galβl,3GalNAc and high-mannose N-linked glycans secretory GCs and decrease in GCs-producing sulfomucins in the caecum; (5) increase in the numbers of crypt cells containing sulfate and non-sulfated acidic glycans. Overall, dietary Slab51® induces morphological and region-specific changes in glycoprotein composition of guinea fowl intestine, promoting gut health.
Highlights
The gastro-intestinal mucosal surface of vertebrates is covered with mucus, a viscous gel-like layer which is produced by goblet cells
Considering that Slab51® induces changes in the carbohydrate composition of glycans secreted along intestinal tracts of mammals [20,21], we aimed to evaluate the effect of the aforementioned probiotics on the glycan composition of glycoproteins produced in the intestine, with particular attention to the goblet cells mucins, of guineafowl
The mucosa was covered by a simple columnar epithelium, and goblet cells (GCs) were scattered among the columnar cells
Summary
The gastro-intestinal mucosal surface of vertebrates is covered with mucus, a viscous gel-like layer which is produced by goblet cells. This mucus layer is the single large physical barrier which prevents invasion of the intestinal epithelial cells by gut pathogen bacteria and viruses, and it may selectively facilitate adherent growth of normal resident gut microbiota [1]. An N-glycan is a sugar chain covalently linked to an asparagine residue of a polypeptide chain. An O-glycan is frequently linked to a serine or threonine residue of the polypeptide [4]. The high level of glycosylation enables mucins to function as a protective barrier by lubricating the epithelium and preventing degradation of the protein backbone by proteases [6,7]. The host defense against infection can result in differences in mucin expression, as is the case of necrotic enteritis infection in the mucosa of the small intestine [10]
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