Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2019 Sep 20;7(10):374.
doi: 10.3390/microorganisms7100374.

Microbiota, Gut Health and Chicken Productivity: What Is the Connection?

Juan M Diaz Carrasco  1   2 , Natalia A Casanova  3 , Mariano E Fernández Miyakawa  4   5
Affiliations
Review

Microbiota, Gut Health and Chicken Productivity: What Is the Connection?

Juan M Diaz Carrasco et al. Microorganisms. .

Abstract

Gut microbiota and its relationship to animal health and productivity in commercial broiler chickens has been difficult to establish due to high variability between flocks, which derives from plenty of environmental, nutritional, and host factors that influence the load of commensal and pathogenic microbes surrounding birds during their growth cycle in the farms. Chicken gut microbiota plays a key role in the maintenance of intestinal health through its ability to modulate host physiological functions required to maintain intestinal homeostasis, mainly through competitive exclusion of detrimental microorganisms and pathogens, preventing colonization and therefore decreasing the expense of energy that birds normally invest in keeping the immune system active against these pathogens. Therefore, a "healthy" intestinal microbiota implies energy saving for the host which translates into an improvement in productive performance of the birds. This review compiles information about the main factors that shape the process of gut microbiota acquisition and maturation, their interactions with chicken immune homeostasis, and the outcome of these interactions on intestinal health and productivity.

Keywords: gut health; intestinal microbiota; performance; poultry; productivity.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Key environmental and host-related factors that shape chicken gut microbiota and its interplay with gut health and productive performance.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. OECD/FAO . OECD-FAO Agricultural Outlook 2017–2026. OECD Publishng; Paris, France: 2017.
    1. Kers J.G., Velkers F.C., Fischer E.A.J., Hermes G.D.A., Stegeman J.A., Smidt H. Host and Environmental Factors Affecting the Intestinal Microbiota in Chickens. Front. Microbiol. 2018;9:235. doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2018.00235. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Stanley D., Geier M.S., Denman S.E., Haring V.R., Crowley T.M., Hughes R.J., Moore R.J. Identification of chicken intestinal microbiota correlated with the efficiency of energy extraction from feed. Vet. Microbiol. 2013;164 doi: 10.1016/j.vetmic.2013.01.030. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Mancabelli L., Ferrario C., Milani C., Mangifesta M., Turroni F., Duranti S., Lugli G.A., Viappiani A., Ossiprandi M.C., van Sinderen D., et al. Insights into the biodiversity of the gut microbiota of broiler chickens. Environ. Microbiol. 2016;18:4727–4738. doi: 10.1111/1462-2920.13363. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Oakley B.B., Lillehoj H.S., Kogut M.H., Kim W.K., Maurer J.J., Pedroso A., Lee M.D., Collett S.R., Johnson T.J., Cox N.A. The chicken gastrointestinal microbiome. FEMS Microbiol. Lett. 2014;360:100–112. doi: 10.1111/1574-6968.12608. - DOI - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources