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The aim of the present work was, after a coccidiosis outbreak in a farm rearing red-legged partridges (Alectoris rufa) in Brittany (France), to identify the Eimeria species and describe gross lesions induced by three of them (Eimeria kofoidi, Eimeria caucasica and Eimeria legionensis) after experimental infection. E. kofoidi oocysts measured 19.3 µm×16.3 µm on average; neither micropyle nor oocyst residuum were present, but one, two or more small polar granules were visible. After inoculation of 300,000 oocysts per partridge, severe gross lesions were observed in the duodenum and jejunum, characterized by thickened oedematous mucosa and lumen filled with thick mucus, gas and sometimes false-membrane due to sloughed epithelium. E. caucasica oocysts were on average 29.8 µm×19.5 µm in size; no oocyst residuum was observed, but a large granule was well visible. E. caucasica also invaded both the duodenum and jejunum, causing haemorrhagic points on the serosal surface, as well as mucoid duodenitis and catarrhal enteritis when 30,000 oocysts were inoculated per bird. E. legionensis oocysts measured 22.6 µm×14.9 µm on average; they presented a clear micropyle beneath which one or two granulations were present. E. legionensis mainly invaded the caeca; low mortality was observed at the dosage of 200,000 oocysts per bird. Caecal walls were thickened and caseous material was condensed into off-white cheesy cores. For each species, oocyst shedding started 5 days post inoculation, peaked at 9, 8 and 6 days post inoculation for E. kofoidi, E. caucasica and E. legionensis, respectively, then decreased and persisted until 15 days post inoculation (end of examinations). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The transition from a milk-based diet to exclusive solid feeding deeply modifies microbiota-host crosstalk. Specifically, early ingestion of plant polysaccharides would be one of the main nutritional components to drive host-microbiota-interaction. To capture the effects of polysaccharides early-life nutrition (starch vs rapidly fermentable fiber) on the holobiont development, we investigated on the one hand the gut bacteriome and metabolome and on the other hand the transcriptome of two host gut tissues. Rabbit model was used to study post-natal co-development of the gut microbiota and its host around weaning transition. The assessment of the microbial composition of the gut appendix together with the caecum was provided for the first time. Gene expression signatures were analyzed along the gut (ileum and caecum) through high-throughput qPCR. The data collected were completed by the analysis of animal growth changes and time-series assessment of blood biomarkers. Those accessible and reusable data could help highlight the gut development dynamics as well as biological adaptation processes at the onset of solid feeding., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Dietary amino acids (AA) supplied as protein or in free form are not only digested and absorbed at different rates but can also induce differences in the intestinal physiology of pigs. We compared the apparent jejunal AA digestibility, intestinal morphology, and gene expression of AA transporters of pigs fed diets providing different forms of AA. Thirty growing pigs (33.7 ± 4.1 kg) were fed one of three experimental diets that provided AA either as protein from feather meal (INT), as free AA and small peptides obtained by extensive acid hydrolysis of feathers (HYD), or as a mix of individual purified AA with the same AA profile as HYD (FAA). Pigs were fed the same quantity of feed, energy, and AA. After 14 d, pigs were slaughtered 3 h after feeding a meal with indigestible markers. Digesta and tissue were collected from different sections of the small intestine. Jejunal digesta was used to measure apparent jejunal digestibility of AA. Samples of the duodenum, jejunum, and ileum were used to measure intestinal morphology and the gene expression of intestinal AA transporters. The measured apparent jejunal digestibility of AA of INT was lower compared to HYD and FAA (P < 0.05). The apparent jejunal digestibility of Cys, Gly, His, Met, and Pro was lower for FAA compared to HYD (P < 0.05). This may be due to the small peptides in HYD, which are absorbed faster than individual AA. The villi area in the ileum of HYD fed pigs was the highest (P < 0.05) among the treatments, which may be associated with the reabsorption of endogenous proteins, which occurs mostly in the ileum. In the duodenum, HYD and FAA had lower expression of PepT1 (P < 0.01) probably due to the rapid transit time of digesta compared to INT fed pigs. Pigs fed HYD expressed more ASCT2 (P = 0.02) and CAT-1 (P = 0.04) in the jejunum compared to the pigs fed the other diets. The expression of these transporters along the intestine depended on the relative abundance of readily absorbable dietary AA. Results showed that dietary AA form can have an influence on the morphology and on the expression of different AA transporters along the different sections of the small intestine., (© The Author(s) 2022. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Society of Animal Science. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

In mammals, the introduction of solid food is pivotal for the establishment of the gut microbiota. However, the effects of the first food consumed on long-term microbiota trajectory and host response are still largely unknown. This study aimed to investigate the influences of (i) the timing of first solid food ingestion and (ii) the consumption of plant polysaccharides on bacterial community dynamics and host physiology using a rabbit model. To modulate the first exposure to solid nutrients, solid food was provided to suckling rabbits from two different time points (3 or 15 days of age). In parallel, food type was modulated with the provision of diets differing in carbohydrate content throughout life: the food either was formulated with a high proportion of rapidly fermentable fibers (RFF) or was starch-enriched. We found that access to solid food as of 3 days of age accelerated the gut microbiota maturation. Our data revealed differential effects according to the digestive segment: precocious solid food ingestion influenced to a greater extent the development of bacterial communities of the appendix vermiformis , whereas life course polysaccharides ingestion had marked effects on the cecal microbiota. Greater ingestion of RFF was assumed to promote pectin degradation as revealed by metabolomics analysis. However, transcriptomic and phenotypic host responses remained moderately affected by experimental treatments, suggesting little outcomes of the observed microbiome modulations on healthy subjects. In conclusion, our work highlighted the timing of solid food introduction and plant polysaccharides ingestion as two different tools to modulate microbiota implantation and functionality. IMPORTANCE Our study was designed to gain a better understanding of how different feeding patterns affect the dynamics of gut microbiomes and microbe-host interactions. This research showed that the timing of solid food introduction is a key component of the gut microbiota shaping in early developmental stages, though with lower impact on settled gut microbiota profiles in older individuals. This study also provided in-depth analysis of dietary polysaccharide effects on intestinal microbiota. The type of plant polysaccharides reaching the gut through the lifetime was described as an important modulator of the cecal microbiome and its activity. These findings will contribute to better define the interventions that can be employed for modulating the ecological succession of young mammal gut microbiota.

Background: Glutathione has become a potential skin-lightening ingredient after the discovery of its anti-melanogenic properties. Various mechanisms of action have been considered to explain this property, one of them being the skewing of the melanin synthesis pathway toward the production of lighter pheomelanin instead of darker eumelanin, consequently producing a lightening effect., Aims: To evaluate the skin lightening and anti-dark spot effects of oral supplementation with L-Cystine associated with L-Glutathione as compared to placebo and benchmark., Methods: Effects of this L-Cystine-L-Glutathione oral combination were investigated in a 12-week randomized, double-blind, parallel-group, benchmark- and placebo-controlled trial involving 124 Asian female subjects. Women were randomly allocated into 4 equal groups (500 mg L-Cystine and 250 mg L-Glutathione, 250 mg reduced L-Glutathione, 500 mg L-Cystine, or a placebo, daily). Skin color was measured at baseline, after 6 and 12 weeks by spectrophotometry. Size and color of facial dark spots were determined from digital photographs., Results: A significant skin lightening was observed after 12 weeks of oral supplementation with L-Cystine associated with L-Glutathione. This combination also induced a significant reduction in the size of facial dark spots after 6 and 12 weeks. It is noteworthy that the observed effects were not only significantly better than those obtained with placebo, but also with L-Cystine alone or L-Glutathione alone., Conclusion: The daily oral administration of 500 mg L-Cystine and 250 mg L-Glutathione during 12 weeks was a safe treatment to effectively lighten the skin and reduce the size of facial dark spots of Asian women., (© 2021 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Early introduction of a nutritional substrate is a promising biomimetic strategy for controlling the implantation of the microbiota and preserving the health of young animals. In this study, we provided experimental solid substrate in a gel form to stimulate suckling rabbits' intake and to investigate its effects on microbiota implantation and colonization. All the rabbits had access to solid feed outside the nest as of 15 days of age. Except for the control group, rabbits were offered starter feed gels inside the nests from 3 to 18 days of age. These gels were either free of additives (AF&#95;GEL) or contained 4% of fructo-oligosaccharides (FOS&#95;GEL) or 4% of mannan-oligosaccharides and β-glucans mixtures (MOS&#95;GEL). The cecal content of 160 rabbits was sampled at 18, 29, 38, and 57 days of age and analyzed using 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Pups consumed an average of 3.95 ± 1.07 g of starter feed gel with a higher intake when it was supplemented with fructo-oligosaccharides (+1.2 g; P < 0.05). Starter feed gel consumption increased the ensuing intake of pellets (+17 g from 15 to 21 days; P < 0.05). Alpha-diversity indexes were similar between groups and prebiotic supplementation did not induce a clear shift in microbiota pattern. Conversely, when considering rabbits that consumed more starter feed, the highest proportions of bacteria with plant-degrading abilities, such as species from the Lachnospiraceae and Ruminococcaceae families, were observed at 18 days of age. However, fermentative activities were not affected by starter feed intake at 29, 38, and 57 days of age. By providing comprehensive results on the regulation of microbial community structure at the onset of solid feed intake, this research paves the way for further studies on digestive ecosystem maturation., (Copyright © 2020 Paës, Gidenne, Bébin, Duperray, Gohier, Guené-Grand, Rebours, Bouchez, Barilly, Aymard and Combes.)

Weaning is a critical period for the health of rabbits, with a high sensitivity to digestive diseases. Allowing early consumption of solid feed in the nest of the suckling rabbit could help to maintain its health around weaning. In general, previous studies have focused on feed intake of rabbits when they are able to leave the nest, i.e. around 16 days. Herein, we provide a unique dataset of the dynamics of the onset of feed intake in suckling rabbits from 8 days to weaning. We quantified the solid feed intake behaviour and determined the dietary preferences for pellets according to their physical properties using nine pellets differing in diameter or compression rate. Additionally to the data provided in Paës et al. [1] we provide (i) the description of the nine pellets processing (ii) the description of the 3 point-scale system for nest quality evaluation, (iii) details on the device used to provide pellets in the nest, (iv) milk intake data and milk intake curve calculation and (v) pellet intake data according to physical characteristics., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2020 Published by Elsevier Inc.)

Background: Short-term feed restriction strategies are used in rabbits to reduce postweaning digestive disorders, but little is known about the involvement of the immune system in these beneficial effects., Objective: In the present study, the consequences of feed and energy restriction on immune response were investigated., Methods: At weaning, 320 male and female rabbits were assigned to 4 groups differing in dietary digestible energy (DE) concentrations and intake levels: a low-energy ad libitum-feed (LE100) group, a low-energy restricted-feed (LE75) group, a high-energy ad libitum-feed (HE100) group, and a high-energy restricted-feed (HE75) group. The high-energy groups consumed 10.13 MJ DE/kg of feed, whereas the low-energy groups consumed 9.08 MJ DE/kg (formulated values). Intake amounts for the restricted groups were 75% those of the ad libitum groups. Rabbits consumed these diets until age 63 d, after which they consumed feed ad libitum for 9 d. Ten rabbits per group and per age were killed at ages 42, 50, 63, and 72 d. Spleens and appendixes were weighed; Peyer's patch surface area was determined by image analysis; plasma total immunoglobulin (Ig) G and anti-ovalbumin IgG; and fecal and plasma IgA concentrations were determined by ELISA; and ileal expressions of cytokines were measured by quantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction at ages 50 and 63 d., Results: The relative weight and size of the lymphoid organs were not affected by treatments. Concentrations of plasma total IgA (-41% at 63 d and -29% at 72 d), IgG (-22% at 72 d), and anti-ovalbumin IgG (-41% at 63 d) were lower with feed restriction. Fecal IgA concentrations were lower with quantitative restriction (-40%, -52%, and -65% at age 42, 50, and 63 d, respectively) and energy restriction (-56%, -46%, and -73% at ages 50, 63, and 72 d, respectively). Feed-restricted rabbits tended to have greater expressions of interleukin (IL) 1β and IL-2 and lower expressions of tumor necrosis factor α (P < 0.1)., Conclusion: These results demonstrated that, in rabbits, restriction and, to a lesser extent, dietary energy concentration modulate gut immunity., (© 2015 American Society for Nutrition.)

1. A common reference procedure adopted by several European laboratories to determine apparent metabolisable energy corrected to zero-nitrogen balance (AMEn) is described. 2. Reproducibility has been estimated by comparing results from 4 diets measured in 7 laboratories. The standard deviations between laboratories of dry matter, gross energy, Kjeldahl nitrogen and AMEn were respectively, on average, 11.29 g/kg, 0.242 MJ/kg, 1.56 g/kg and 0.380 MJ/kg dry matter; the corresponding coefficients of variation between laboratories were 1.27, 1.29, 4.39 and 2.92%. 3. Effect of food intake was tested by comparing AMEn from birds fed either 0.90 or 0.45 of ad libitum: the amount of food intake had a negligible effect on AMEn values. Endogenous energy losses corrected (EELn) or not (EEL) to zero nitrogen balance were estimated either by regression between excreted energy and ingested energy or in fasted and glucose-fed cockerels. EELn estimated by regression was, on average, 8.7 kJ/bird/d.; it was independent of diet composition. EEL and EELn determined in fasted or glucose-fed birds were higher than those determined by regression. 4. AMEn values measured by individual laboratory procedures were very close to those obtained by the reference method, except from laboratories using a tube feeding procedure, where deviations were probably a consequence of overestimated EEL.