Project description:Adding lysolecithin to feed has reportedly improved the performance of broiler chickens. Lysolecithin is generated by phospholipase catalyzed hydrolysis of lecithin. The enzymatic reaction converts phospholipids into lysophospholipids, with lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC) the primary product. Here we compared supplementation with a commercial lysolecithin (Lysoforte(R) Kemin Industries, Inc., Des Moines, IA) with comparable levels of purified LPC for effects on broilers. Despite no differences in weight gain during the starter period, we discovered a significant increase in average villus length in the jejunum with lysolecithin, but not with LPC. High-throughput gene expression microarray analyses revealed many more genes were regulated in the epithelium of jejunum by lysolecithin compared to LPC. The most upregulated genes and pathways were for collagen, extracellular matrix and integrins. Staining sections of jejunum with Sirius Red confirmed the increased deposition of collagen fibrils in villi of broilers fed lysolecithin but not LPC. Thus, lysolecithin elicits gene expression in the intestinal epithelium leading to enhanced collagen deposition and villus length. LPC alone as a supplement does not mimic these responses. Feed supplementation with lysolecithin triggers changes in the intestinal epithelium with the potential to improve overall gut health and performance.
Project description:Root exudates play an important role in plant-microbe interaction. The transcriptional profilings of plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria Bacillus amyloliquefaciens SQR9 in response to maize root exudates under static condition, were investigated by an Illumina RNA-seq for understanding the regulatory roles of the root exudates.
Project description:Bacillus amyloliquefaciens FZB42 is a representative organism for Gram positive soil bacteria associated with plant roots and beneficial to plant growth. It is of immense importance to understand mechanisms of this class of bacteria adapting to rhizosphere. In this work employing differential RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) and Northern blot, we systematically identified transcription start sites of mRNAs as well as non-coding regulatory RNAs in FZB42. The genes regulated at different growth phases and located in polycistronic operons were also identified. A set of genes were re-annotated. In addition, a sRNA named Bas01 was identified to be involved in Bacillus sporulation and biofilm formation. The result we obtained provides valuable data for investigation of Bacillus gene expression and molecular details of rhizobacterial interaction with host plants. Examination of transcriptome profile of rhizobacterium B. amyloliquefaciens FZB42 grown under six conditions.
Project description:We report the application of a high-throughput technique, RNA-seq, to study the transcriptomic response of P. chlororaphis and Bacillus amyloliquefaciens growing in co-cultures in King B solid medium
Project description:An experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of dietary inclusion of rye, a model ingredient to increase gut viscosity, between 14 and 28 days of age on immune competence related parameters and performance of broiler. A total number of 960 one-day-old male Ross 308 chicks were weighed and randomly allocated to 24 pens (40 birds per pen), and the birds in every 8 replicate pens were assigned to one of three experimental diets including graded levels, 0%, 5%, and 10% of rye. Tested immune competence related parameters were composition of the intestinal microbiota, genes expression in gut tissue, and gut morphology. The inclusion of 5% or 10% rye in the diet (d14-28) resulted in decreased performance and litter quality, but in increased villus height and crypt depth in the small intestine (jejunum) of the broilers. Relative bursa and spleen weights were not affected by dietary inclusion of rye. In the jejunum, no effects on number and size of goblet cells, and only trends on microbiota composition in the digesta were observed. Dietary inclusion of rye affected expression of genes involved in cell cycle processes of the jejunal enterocyte cells, thereby influencing cell growth, cell differentiation and cell survival, which in turn were consistent with the observed differences in the morphology of the gut wall. In addition, providing rye-rich diets to broilers affected the complement and coagulation pathways, which are parts of the innate immune system. These pathways are involved in eradicating invasive pathogens. Overall, it can be concluded that inclusion of 5% or 10% rye to the grower diet of broilers had limited effects on performance. Ileal gut morphology, microbiota composition of jejunal digesta, and gene expression profiles of jejunal tissue, however, were affected by dietary rye inclusion level, indicating that rye supplementation to broiler diets might affect immune competence of the birds.
Project description:Bacillus amyloliquefaciens FZB42 is a representative organism for Gram positive soil bacteria associated with plant roots and beneficial to plant growth. It is of immense importance to understand mechanisms of this class of bacteria adapting to rhizosphere. In this work employing differential RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) and Northern blot, we systematically identified transcription start sites of mRNAs as well as non-coding regulatory RNAs in FZB42. The genes regulated at different growth phases and located in polycistronic operons were also identified. A set of genes were re-annotated. In addition, a sRNA named Bas01 was identified to be involved in Bacillus sporulation and biofilm formation. The result we obtained provides valuable data for investigation of Bacillus gene expression and molecular details of rhizobacterial interaction with host plants.