Dahadha Rahmeh, Hundam Seif, Al-Zghoul Mohammad Borhan, Alanagreh Lo'ai, Ababneh Mustafa, Mayyas Mohammad, Alghizzawi Daoud, Mustafa Minas A, Gerrard David E, Dalloul Rami A
Department of Basic Medical Veterinary Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Jordan University of Science and Technology, Irbid 22110, Jordan.
Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences, Faculty of Applied Medical Sciences, The Hashemite University, Zarqa 13133, Jordan.
Animals (Basel). 2025 Jun 6;15(12):1677. doi: 10.3390/ani15121677.
Rising global temperatures challenge poultry production by disrupting the cecal microbiota, which is essential for chicken health. Thermal manipulation (TM) during embryogenesis is a potential strategy to enhance thermotolerance in broilers. This study examined TM's effects on the cecal microbiome, body weight (BW), and body temperature (BT) under chronic heat stress (CHS). Fertile Indian River eggs ( = 800) were incubated under control (37.8 °C, 56% RH) or TM conditions (39 °C, 65% RH for 18 h per day from embryonic day 10 to 18). On post-hatch day 18, male chicks were assigned to either CHS (35 ± 0.5 °C for five days) or thermoneutral conditions (24 ± 0.5 °C). The CHS-TM group showed a significantly higher BW than the CHS-CON group ( < 0.05). Under thermoneutral conditions, TM chicks had a lower BT on day 1 ( < 0.05), while the CHS-TM group exhibited a non-significant BT reduction compared to the CHS-CON group under heat stress ( > 0.05). An analysis of the gut microbiome showed that the beta diversity analysis (PERMANOVA, < 0.05) indicated distinct microbial shifts. Firmicutes and Bacteroidota dominated the phylum level, with CHS increased Bacilli and while reducing Lachnospirales in the CHS-TM group. These findings suggest that TM modulates gut microbiota and mitigates BW loss, offering a potential strategy to enhance broilers' resilience to heat stress.
全球气温上升通过破坏盲肠微生物群来挑战家禽生产，而盲肠微生物群对鸡的健康至关重要。胚胎发育期间的热调节（TM）是提高肉鸡耐热性的一种潜在策略。本研究考察了在慢性热应激（CHS）条件下TM对盲肠微生物组、体重（BW）和体温（BT）的影响。将800枚印度河种蛋在对照（37.8°C，56%相对湿度）或TM条件（从胚胎第10天到第18天，每天18小时，39°C，65%相对湿度）下孵化。在孵化后第18天，将雄性雏鸡分为CHS组（35±0.5°C，持续五天）或热中性条件组（24±0.5°C）。CHS-TM组的BW显著高于CHS-CON组（P<0.05）。在热中性条件下，TM雏鸡在第1天的BT较低（P<0.05），而在热应激条件下，CHS-TM组与CHS-CON组相比BT降低不显著（P>0.05）。肠道微生物组分析表明，β多样性分析（PERMANOVA，P<0.05）显示出明显的微生物变化。厚壁菌门和拟杆菌门在门水平上占主导地位，CHS使CHS-TM组中的芽孢杆菌增加，同时减少了毛螺菌科。这些发现表明，TM可调节肠道微生物群并减轻体重损失，为提高肉鸡对热应激的恢复力提供了一种潜在策略。
