Probiotics are a substitute for antibiotics in the sense of intestinal health maintenance. Clostridium butyricum and Bacillus subtilis, as probiotic bacteria, have been widely used in animal production. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of the two probiotic bacteria in geese. A total of 288 1-day old, healthy Yangzhou geese were randomly assigned into 4 groups (A, B, C and D) with 6 replicates of 12 birds each. Group A, as control, was fed a basal diet, and the treatment groups (B, C and D) were fed the basal diet supplemented with 250 mg/kg Clostridium butyricum (the viable count was 3.0 × 10⁶ CFU/g), 250 mg/kg Bacillus subtilis (the viable count was 2.0 × 10⁷ CFU/g), or a combination of the two probiotic bacteria for 70 days, respectively. The results indicated that: compared with the control group, dietary probiotics (1) promoted the growth and feed intake of the geese, (2) increased the absolute weight of duodenum, (3) increased the antioxidative capacity (total antioxidative capacity (T-AOC), total superoxide dismutase (T-SOD) and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-PX)) of intestinal mucosa, (4) improved intestinal morphology (the ratio of villus height to crypt depth), (5) but did not induce inflammation and changes of tight junction in the intestine, which was indicated by no induction of pro/inflammatory cytokines (IL-1β, IL-6, IL-10, TNFAIP3) and tight junction related genes (TJP1 and OCLN). Moreover, dietary probiotics increased the relative abundances of Firmicutes phylum and Lactobacillus genus and decreased the relative abundances of Proteobacteria phylum or Ralstonia genus in the intestinal content. In addition, the alpha diversity (observed species, Chao1, and estimate the number of OTUs in the community(ACE)) was reduced and the predicted functions of intestinal microflora, including peptidases, carbon fixation and metabolic function of starch and sugar, were enhanced by dietary probiotics. In conclusion, dietary probiotics promote the growth of geese by their positive effects on intestinal structure and function, the composition and functions of gut microflora, and intestinal antioxidative capacity.

(1) The aim of this study was to elucidate the role of the Gallus gallus avian β-defensin 11 (AvBD11) in the immune response induced by the avian influenza virus H9N2. (2) AvBD11 was expressed using E. coli, and the effects of different concentrations of AvBD11 on cytokine expression in the ex vivo and in vivo erythrocytes of chickens infected with the avian influenza subtype H9N2 were detected by using fluorescence quantification. (3) The results showed that cytokine expression varied among the test groups compared to the control group in the in vitro assay at 2, 6, and 10 h. Lipopolysaccharide induced TNF factor (LITAF) and Interferon-γ (IFN-γ) were significantly increased in the AvBD11 group with the addition of the final concentration of 15 μg/mL at 6 h. At 10 h, Interleukin-1β (IL-1β) and IFN-γ were both more significantly increased in the 15 and 10 μg/mL groups than in the H9N2 group alone. In the in vivo test, IFN-γ and Interleukin-10 (IL-10) were significantly increased in the high-dose group than in the H9N2 group at 3 d and 7 d. (4) In conclusion, the ability of AvBD11 to induce the expression of more cytokines by chicken erythrocytes in a short period of time suggests that it is not only an antimicrobial peptide but also a possible immunomodulator.

ERECTAs are receptor-like kinases that regulate plant biomass and stress resistance. In this study, the wheat (Triticum aestivum) TaERECTA gene was used as a probe to identify the SbERECTA family genes (SbERs) in the sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) genome, analyse their subcellular localisation and characterise their expression. Results showed that the two SbER members, SbER10 with three copies (SbER10_X1, SbER10_X2, and SbER10_X3) and SbER4 with two copies (SbER4_X1 and SbER4_X2), were found on chromosomes 10 and 4 of sorghum, respectively. SbER10 had the highest expression level in the pedicel tissue and showed a remarkable response under treatment with abscisic acid, brassinolide, gibberellin and indole-3-acetic acid. SbER10_X1, functioning on the cell membrane and chloroplast, exhibited abundant transcript in only a few sorghum varieties that are grown in mountainous areas and receive strong light, heat, and water supply. Expression of SbER10_X1 was significantly and positively correlated with plant biomass of 32 sorghum germplasm resources. These results indicate that SbER10 genes have an important regulatory role in sorghum growth, and increasing SbER10 transcription level offers a potential strategic target for breeding or biotechnological approaches to enhance sorghum biomass and environmental adaptability.