Dietary resveratrol supplementation alleviates cold exposure-induced pyroptosis and inflammation in broiler heart by modulating oxidative stress and endoplasmic reticulum stress.

To explore the potential protective effect of resveratrol (RES) on cold-exposed broilers, 360 21-day-old broilers were equally divided into 5 groups with 6 replicates. A control (CON) group was reared at the normal feeding temperature and received a basal diet, and 4 cold exposure (8 ± 1°C for 10 h/d from d 29 to 42) groups were fed the basal diet with 0 (CE), 250 (CE + RES250), 500 (CE + RES500), and 750 (CE + RES750) mg/kg RES from d 22 to 42. Broilers were slaughtered on d 42 and heart tissues were collected to measure the relevant indexes. The results showed that heart tissues of all CE-broilers had inflammatory cell infiltrations, and dietary RES supplementation reduced this phenomenon. Compared to CON group, the concentrations of MDA and H2O2 were increased and activities of SOD and CAT were decreased in all CE-broilers (P < 0.05). mRNA expression of genes related to endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress (GRP78, IRE1, PERK, EIF-2α, ATF4, ATF6, and CHOP), pyroptosis (NLRP3, ASC, Caspase1, GSDME, IL-18, and IL-1ß), and proinflammation (TNF-α, IFN-γ, IL-2, and IL-6) was upregulated and that of ant-inflammatory cytokines (IL-4 and IL-10) was downregulated in CE and all CE + RES groups compared to CON group (P < 0.05). Compared to CE group, the activities of SOD and CAT and mRNA expression of anti-inflammatory genes were increased (P < 0.05), and concentrations of MDA and H2O2 and mRNA expression of ER stress, pyroptosis and proinflammatory genes were reduced (P < 0.05) in 3 CE + RES groups. Additionally, protein levels of PERK, ATF4, CHOP, NLRP3, Caspase1, GSDMD, IL-18, IL-1ß, TNF-α, and IL-10 were similar in their mRNA expression. Overall, cold exposure caused oxidative stress and ER stress, and induced pyroptosis and inflammatory response, resulting in heart injury in broilers, and dietary RES addition reduced heart damage by enhancing antioxidant defense function. This study indicates that RES can be a feed additive to alleviate cold exposure-induced heart injury in broilers, and a 500 mg RES/kg diet is the optimal supplemental level.

Intermittent and mild cold stimulation enhances immune function of broilers via co-regulation of CIRP and TRPM8 on NF-κB and MAPK signaling pathways.

Improving immune function is an important indicator for establishing cold adaptation in broilers. In the study, to explore the effects and molecular mechanisms of intermittent and mild cold stimulation (IMCS) on the immune function of broilers, CIRP and TRPM8, induced by cold stimulation, as well as the NF-κB and MAPK pathways which play an important role in immune response, were selected to investigate. A total of 192 one-day-old broilers (Ross 308) were selected and randomly divided into the control group (CC) and the cold stimulation group (CS). The broilers in CC were raised at normal feeding temperature from d 1 to 43, while the broilers in CS were subjected to cold stimulation from day 15 to 35, with a temperature 3 °C below that of the CC group for 5 h, at 1 d intervals. The results showed that IMCS had little effect on the broiler hearts, and the myocardial structure was not damaged. On d 22, IMCS significantly increased the mRNA levels of CIRP, TRPM8, P65, P38, COX-2, TNF-α, IFN- γ, IL-6, IL-10, and the protein levels of CIRP, P65, P38, IL-1ß and iNOS in the hearts, and the levels of CIRP and all cytokines in the serum (P ≤ 0.05). The mRNA and protein levels of IκB-α were significantly reduced (P ≤ 0.05). On d 36, the mRNA levels of TRPM8, P65, ERK, and IL-10 in the hearts and the content of COX-2 in the serum in CS were increased significantly (P ≤ 0.05), while the mRNA levels of IκB-α, P38, and IL-1ß were decreased significantly (P ≤ 0.05). On d 43, IMCS significantly upregulated the mRNA levels of TRPM8, IFN- γ, IL-4, IL-6, IL-10, and the protein levels of IκB-α, P38, and the levels of iNOS, TNF-α, IL6 and IL10 in the serum (P ≤ 0.05); whereas it significantly downregulated CIRP, JNK, P38, iNOS, TNF-α mRNA levels, and CIRP, P65, ERK, JNK, IL1ß and iNOS protein levels (P ≤ 0.05). Therefore, IMCS can enhance broiler immune function through co-regulation of CIRP and TRPM8 on the NF-κB and MAPK pathways, which facilitate the cold adaptation in broilers.

Music with Different Tones Affects the Development of Brain Nerves in Mice in Early Life through BDNF and Its Downstream Pathways.

As a means of environmental enrichment, music environment has positive and beneficial effects on biological neural development. Kunming white mice (61 days old) were randomly divided into the control group (group C), the group of D-tone (group D), the group of A-tone (group A) and the group of G-tone (group G). They were given different tonal music stimulation (group A) for 14 consecutive days (2 h/day) to study the effects of tonal music on the neural development of the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex of mice in early life and its molecular mechanisms. The results showed that the number of neurons in the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex of mice increased, with the cell morphology relatively intact. In addition, the number of dendritic spines and the number of dendritic spines per unit length were significantly higher than those in group C, and the expressions of synaptic plasticity proteins (SYP and PSD95) were also significantly elevated over those in group C. Compared with group C, the expression levels of BDNF, TRKB, CREB, PI3K, AKT, GS3Kß, PLCγ1, PKC, DAG, ERK and MAPK genes and proteins in the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex of mice in the music groups were up-regulated, suggesting that different tones of music could regulate neural development through BDNF and its downstream pathways. The enrichment environment of D-tone music is the most suitable tone for promoting the development of brain nerves in early-life mice. Our study provides a basis for screening the optimal tone of neuroplasticity in early-life mice and for the treatment of neurobiology and neurodegenerative diseases.