Assessment of the Impact of Humic Acids on Intestinal Microbiota, Gut Integrity, Ileum Morphometry, and Cellular Immunity of Turkey Poults Fed an Aflatoxin B<sub>1</sub>-Contaminated Diet
Jesús A. Maguey-González,
Jing Liu,
Guolong Zhang,
Juan D. Latorre,
Juan O. Hernández-Ramírez,
María de Jesús Nava-Ramírez,
Roberto Senas-Cuesta,
Sergio Gómez-Rosales,
María de Lourdes Ángeles,
Andressa Stein,
Bruno Solís-Cruz,
Daniel Hernández-Patlán,
Rubén Merino-Guzmán,
Xochitl Hernandez-Velasco,
Inkar Castellanos-Huerta,
Santiago Uribe-Diaz,
Alma Vázquez-Durán,
Abraham Méndez-Albores,
Victor M. Petrone-Garcia,
Guillermo Tellez Jr.,
Billy M. Hargis,
Guillermo Téllez-Isaías
Affiliations
Jesús A. Maguey-González
Department of Poultry Science, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701, USA
Jing Liu
Department of Animal and Food Sciences, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK 74078, USA
Guolong Zhang
Department of Animal and Food Sciences, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK 74078, USA
Juan D. Latorre
Department of Poultry Science, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701, USA
Juan O. Hernández-Ramírez
Unidad de Investigación Multidisciplinaria L14 (Alimentos, Micotoxinas, y Micotoxicosis), Facultad de Estudios Superiores (FES) Cuautitlán, UNAM, Cuautitlán Izcalli 54740, Mexico
María de Jesús Nava-Ramírez
Unidad de Investigación Multidisciplinaria L14 (Alimentos, Micotoxinas, y Micotoxicosis), Facultad de Estudios Superiores (FES) Cuautitlán, UNAM, Cuautitlán Izcalli 54740, Mexico
Roberto Senas-Cuesta
Department of Poultry Science, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701, USA
Sergio Gómez-Rosales
Centro Nacional de Investigación Disciplinaria en Fisiología y Mejoramiento Animal (CENID-INIFAP), Km1 Carretera a Colon Ajuchitlán, Querétaro 76280, Mexico
María de Lourdes Ángeles
Centro Nacional de Investigación Disciplinaria en Fisiología y Mejoramiento Animal (CENID-INIFAP), Km1 Carretera a Colon Ajuchitlán, Querétaro 76280, Mexico
Andressa Stein
Department of Poultry Science, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701, USA
Bruno Solís-Cruz
Laboratorio 5: LEDEFAR, Unidad de Investigación Multidisciplinaria, Facultad de Estudios Superiores (FES) Cuautitlán, UNAM, Cuautitlán Izcalli 54740, Mexico
Daniel Hernández-Patlán
Laboratorio 5: LEDEFAR, Unidad de Investigación Multidisciplinaria, Facultad de Estudios Superiores (FES) Cuautitlán, UNAM, Cuautitlán Izcalli 54740, Mexico
Rubén Merino-Guzmán
Departamento de Medicina y Zootecnia de Aves, Facultad de Medicina Veterinaria y Zootecnia, UNAM, Ciudad de México 04510, Mexico
Xochitl Hernandez-Velasco
Departamento de Medicina y Zootecnia de Aves, Facultad de Medicina Veterinaria y Zootecnia, UNAM, Ciudad de México 04510, Mexico
Inkar Castellanos-Huerta
Department of Poultry Science, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701, USA
Santiago Uribe-Diaz
Department of Poultry Science, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701, USA
Alma Vázquez-Durán
Unidad de Investigación Multidisciplinaria L14 (Alimentos, Micotoxinas, y Micotoxicosis), Facultad de Estudios Superiores (FES) Cuautitlán, UNAM, Cuautitlán Izcalli 54740, Mexico
Abraham Méndez-Albores
Unidad de Investigación Multidisciplinaria L14 (Alimentos, Micotoxinas, y Micotoxicosis), Facultad de Estudios Superiores (FES) Cuautitlán, UNAM, Cuautitlán Izcalli 54740, Mexico
Victor M. Petrone-Garcia
Facultad de Estudios Superiores (FES) Cuautitlán, UNAM, Cuautitlán Izcalli 54740, Mexico
Guillermo Tellez Jr.
Department of Developmental Biology, Roslin Institute, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH25 9RG, UK
Billy M. Hargis
Department of Poultry Science, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701, USA
Guillermo Téllez-Isaías
Department of Poultry Science, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701, USA
A recent study published data on the growth performance, relative weights of the organs of the gastrointestinal tract, liver histology, serum biochemistry, and hematological parameters for turkey poults fed an experimental diet contaminated with aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) and humic acids (HA) extracted from vermicompost. The negative effects of AFB1 (250 ng AFB1/g of feed) were significantly reduced by HA supplementation (0.25% w/w), suggesting that HA might be utilized to ameliorate the negative impact of AFB1 from contaminated diets. The present study shows the results of the remaining variables, as an extension of a previously published work which aimed to evaluate the impact of HA on the intestinal microbiota, gut integrity, ileum morphometry, and cellular immunity of turkey poults fed an AFB1-contaminated diet. For this objective, five equal groups of 1-day-old female Nicholas-700 turkey poults were randomly assigned to the following treatments: negative control (basal diet), positive control (basal diet + 250 ng AFB1/g), HA (basal diet + 0.25% HA), HA + AFB1 (basal diet + 0.25% HA + 250 ng AFB1/g), and Zeolite (basal diet + 0.25% zeolite + 250 ng AFB1/g). In the experiment, seven replicates of ten poults each were used per treatment (n = 70). In general, HA supplementation with or without the presence of AFB1 showed a significant increase (p 1 showed a significant increase in Proteobacteria and lower numbers of beneficial bacteria, clearly suggesting gut dysbacteriosis. Moreover, poults supplemented with AFB1 displayed the lowest morphometric parameters and the highest intestinal permeability. Furthermore, poults in the negative and positive control treatments had the lowest cutaneous basophil hypersensitivity response. These findings suggest that HA supplementation enhanced intestinal integrity (shape and permeability), cellular immune response, and healthier gut microbiota composition, even in the presence of dietary exposure to AFB1. These results complement those of the previously published study, suggesting that HA may be a viable dietary intervention to improve gut health and immunity in turkey poults during aflatoxicosis.
