Cumulative evidence suggests that bacterial pneumonia may contribute to the dysbiosis of the gut microbiota and other gastrointestinal symptoms. Our experiment has demonstrated that lung inflammation induced by M. hyorhinis infection was associated with gut microbiota dysbiosis and intestinal barrier dysfunction, which may provide a theoretical basis for exploring the gut-lung axis based on M. hyorhinis infection.

Objective: This study was conducted to investigate the effects of dietary corn resistant starch (RS) on the intestinal morphology and barrier functions of broilers.Methods: A total of 320 one-day-old broilers were randomly allocated to 5 dietary treatments: one normal corn–soybean (NC) diet, one corn–soybean–based diet supplementation with 20% corn starch (CS), and 3 corn–soybean–based diets supplementation with 4%, 8%, and 12% corn resistant starch (RS) (identified as 4% RS, 8% RS, and 12% RS, respectively). Each group had eight replicates with eight broilers per replicate. After 21 days feeding, one bird with a body weight (BW) close to the average BW of their replicate was selected and slaughtered. The samples of duodenum, jejunum, ileum, caecum digesta, and blood were collected.Results: Birds fed 4% RS, 8% RS and 12% RS diets showed lower feed intake, BW gain, jejunal villus height (VH), duodenal crypt depth (CD), jejunal VH/CD ratio, duodenal goblet cell density as well as mucin1 mRNA expressions compared to the NC group, but showed higher concentrations of cecal acetic acid and butyric acid, percentage of jejunal proliferating cell nuclear antigen-positive cells and delta like canonical Notch ligand 4 (Dll4), and hes family bHLH transcription factor 1 mRNA expressions. However, there were no differences on the plasma diamine oxidase activity and D-lactic acid concentration among all groups.Conclusion: These findings suggested that RS could suppress intestinal morphology and barrier functions by activating Notch pathway and inhibiting the development of goblet cells, resulting in decreased mucins and tight junction mRNA expression.

Resistant starch (RS) has received increased attention due to its potential health benefits. This study was aimed to investigate the effects of dietary corn RS on immunological characteristics of broilers. A total of 320 broiler chicks were randomly allocated to five dietary treatments: normal corn–soyabean (NC) diet group, corn starch diet group, 4 %, 8 % and 12 % RS diet groups. This trial lasted for 42 d. The relative weights of spleen, thymus and bursa, the concentrations of nitric oxide (NO) and IL-4 in plasma at 21 d of age, as well as the activities of total nitric oxide synthase (TNOS) and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) in plasma at 21 and 42 d of age showed positive linear responses (P < 0·05) to the increasing dietary RS level. Meanwhile, compared with the birds from the NC group at 21 d of age, birds fed 4 % RS, 8 % RS and 12 % RS diets exhibited higher (P < 0·05) relative weight of bursa and concentrations of NO and interferon-γ in plasma. Birds fed 4 % RS and 8 % RS diets showed higher (P < 0·05) number of IgA-producing cells in the jejunum. While compared with birds from the NC group at 42 d of age, birds fed 12 % RS diet showed higher (P < 0·05) relative weight of spleen and activities of TNOS and iNOS in plasma. These findings suggested that dietary corn RS supplementation can improve immune function in broilers.

The Zhizhu Decoction (ZZD), as a classic traditional Chinese medicine prescription, has long served as an effective treatment for obesity. However, rapid analysis of its putative bioactive components and their mechanisms of action remains a challenging task due to its chemical complexity and a lack of target-based screening strategies. This study established a rapid screening system using ultrafiltration membrane-based bio-affinity ultrafiltration-mass spectrometry (AUF-MS), combining lipase and α-glucosidase for targeted screening. Ultrafiltration centrifuge tubes made of regenerated cellulose membrane material were used as the core separation unit: following incubation of the enzymes with ZZD, the ultrafiltration membrane preferentially retained compounds in the presence of the target enzymes, while unbound free small molecules were removed through multi-stage buffer centrifugation and washing. Subsequently, compounds showing preferential retention in the presence of the target enzymes were eluted and further characterized using ultra-performance liquid chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS). Candidate bioactive compounds were further evaluated in a free fatty acid (FFA)-induced lipid deposition cell model. We detected 39 compounds in the ZZD extract, and through an ultrafiltration membrane screening system, at least 12 compounds showing preferential retention in the presence of lipase were successfully putatively identified. Notably, naringin, hesperidin, and poncirin showed preferential retention in the lipase-based AUF-MS screening, and their potential cellular lipid-regulating effects were further evaluated in a free fatty acid (FFA)-induced lipid deposition cell model, where all three compounds were associated with reduced lipid accumulation and triglyceride content under the tested conditions. In particular, naringin and hesperidin showed notable effects at relatively low concentrations, highlighting their potential as promising bioactive compounds for further investigation. The study identified several putative enzyme-interacting candidates from ZZD using a membrane-based AUF-MS screening strategy, and selected compounds were further evaluated in an FFA-induced HepG2 cell model for their potential lipid-regulating effects. More importantly, it demonstrated the feasibility of applying the screening strategy for preliminary candidate identification.