Abdel-Moneim Eid Abdel-Moneim
Abdelrazeq M. Shehata
Vinod Kumar Paswan- 1Department of Biological Applications, Nuclear Research Center, Egyptian Atomic Energy Authority, Cairo, Egypt
- 2Department of Animal Production, Faculty of Agriculture, Al-Azhar University, Cairo, Egypt
- 3Department of Dairy Science and Food Technology, Institute of Agricultural Sciences, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India
Editorial on the Research Topic
Early life programming in poultry: Recent insights and interventional approaches
“Early-life programming” describes how exposure to certain conditions during embryonic development or the early post-hatching period can change the normal development process, permanently altering how a bird's body looks and functions (1–4). Early-life programming can affect a bird for the rest of its life, altering its growth performance, tolerance to harsh environmental conditions, resistance to diseases like enteric infection and inflammation, immune function, metabolic disorders, and overall production(2–4). Considerable evidence suggests that early-life programming can alter the phenotype and performance of chicks in significant ways by modifying the expression of specific genes. In both the pre- and post-hatching phases, these treatments alter the environment and the diet of the organisms involved (1, 2).
This Research Topic is aimed at collecting papers suitable for improving our understanding of early life programming and its long-term role in minimizing environmental and health challenges. Its goal is also to share our knowledge on nutritional and environmental factors involved in early-life programming in poultry, such as in-ovo feeding, inadequate conditions, nutrient deficiencies, and sexing methods.
In this special e-book, there are nine papers covering the above-mentioned aspects. Three papers out of nine (33.3%) discuss the role of in-ovo feeding on growth performance, antioxidative capacity, breast development, glycogen reserves, nutrient absorption, immunity, and disease resistance. The excessive use of antibiotics in commercial poultry farms results in multidrug resistance and hinders the efficiency of antibiotics, causing increased threats to human and animal health. Therefore, the use of some natural bioactive molecules that can enhance the immune system, growth performance, and health status can be a promising alternative to antibiotics (5–7). A study by Bhanja et al. shows how silver nanoparticles alone or in combination with some nutrients play an important role in inducing innate or adaptive immune responses in broilers. They demonstrated that in-ovo supplementation of silver nanoparticles with amino acids, vitamins, and trace elements improved post-hatch growth and immune responses in broilers and in particular that 50 μg/egg silver nanoparticles, in combination with vitamins (B1 and B6) and trace elements (Zn and Se), improved growth performance, and that 50 μg/egg silver nanoparticles with trace elements and amino acids enhanced immune responses in broilers challenged with Newcastle disease virus.
Given the biological link between methionine and/or disaccharide and post-hatching growth and development, Dang et al. investigated the effects of in-ovo feeding with methionine (Met) and/or disaccharide (DS) on the breast muscle and small intestine of the goose, together with the contents of its glycogen stores, the activities of its digestive enzymes, and levels of antioxidants in the jejunum. They found that DS injections enhance glycogen reserves and control muscle growth-related gene expression, increasing breast muscle metrics and hatchling weight. Delivering DS into the embryo improved digestive enzyme activities, nutrient transport enzyme activities, jejunal villus indices, and regulated nutrient transport-related gene expression, increasing post-hatch nutritional absorption. Met treatment in-ovo improved breast muscle metrics by regulating growth-related gene expression. Furthermore, Met treatment temporarily improved digestive enzymes, nutrient transport enzymes, small intestine parameters, and nutrient transport-related gene expression, and constantly improved jejunal villus parameters and jejunal antioxidant capacity status, which supported nutrient absorption post-hatching. As a result, they concluded that in-ovo administration of DS with Met is an effective method for enhancing the goslings' post-hatching nutrient absorption and breast muscle growth.
Heat stress promotes oxidative stress, which alters enzyme functions and immunological responses in broilers. Han et al. examined the effects of L-Leucine in-ovo feeding on broiler growth, organ weight, serum metabolites, antioxidant indices, and gene expression during chronic heat stress. Overall, they concluded that L-Leucine in-ovo feeding mitigates oxidative damage and improves antioxidant capacity in broiler chickens exposed to heat stress.
The burden of pathogens can be decreased by the use of probiotics because they initiate resistance to bacterial colonization and boost mucosal immunity (1, 2, 8–10). Yu et al. investigated how consumption of Bacillus coagulans (B. coagulans) and Lactobacillus plantarum (L. plantarum) affected broilers when they were exposed to Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharide (LPS). They demonstrated that supplementing broiler chickens with B. coagulans and L. plantarum enhanced their growth performance, immunity, and antioxidant ability, and reduced the LPS-induced inflammatory response via modulating the gut microbiota.
Exogenous emulsifiers improve lipid utilization and enhance nutrient absorption in broilers. The purpose of the research conducted by Li, Abdel-Moneim, Mesalam et al. was to investigate the genes that are crucial to the regulatory impact of lysoforte. They reported that at least 29 genes (including REG4, GJB1, KAT2A, APOA5, SERPINE2, ELOVL1, ABCC2, ANKRD9, CYP4V2, and PISD) and several signaling pathways may be involved in enhancing jejuna morphology in broiler birds. These findings clarified the role of LFT in maintaining the health and integrity of the intestines in broiler chickens.
The effects of hypoxia exposure (HE) on the embryogenesis of chickens are undesirable; however, the mechanism underlying the responses of the heart to HE during embryogenesis in birds is not yet fully understood. The research of Li, Abdel-Moneim, Hu et al. aimed to identify the hub genes as well as the signaling pathways that are associated with chronic hypoxic stress. Numerous genes, including SGCD, DHRS9, HELQ, MCMDC2, and ESCO2, along with multiple signaling pathways (including MAPK, PPAR, insulin, ERI, and adrenergic signaling pathways), were revealed to potentially contribute to the heart's response to HE in chickens.
The research article by Li, Shi et al. identified the key genes involved in LPC regulation in the jejunum of birds. Many genes may be involved in influencing the jejuna morphology of birds, including RSAD2, OASL, EPSTI1, CMPK2, IFIH1, IFIT5, USP18, MX1, and STAT1.
The substantial roles that methionine (Met) plays in the synthesis of proteins and the methylation process of DNA, and its role as a precursor in the production of cysteine, glutathione, and taurine, point to the crucial nature of this amino acid. Liu et al. looked at how a methionine (Met) deficiency during the chicks' early growth (0–6 weeks) affected their performance, egg quality, and serum amino acid metabolism later in life. The growth performance, blood amino acid content, intestinal maturation, and gut microbiota of layer hens were all negatively affected by a lack of Met during the evaluation period (0–6 weeks). Met deficit during this stage led to a serum amino acid imbalance, which impacted growth performance, and had a negative effect on the development and productivity of egg-laying hens throughout the duration of the research (from week 7 to 24).
Because turkey farms often use two distinct lines: a heavy line, which is composed of males, and a laying line, which supplies dams, early sex determination is an extremely important factor in the industry. Pardo et al. demonstrated that combining egg external traits, down feather colors, and two behavioral procedures (“English method” and “slap technique”) permit successful sexing in newly hatched Andalusian turkey poults, especially for the two roan varieties (black roan and bronze roan).
Thus, this Research Topic presents an overview of existing knowledge, highlights new insights on early-life programming in poultry and draws attention to some useful applications during the perinatal period in poultry.
Author contributions
All authors listed have made a substantial, direct, and intellectual contribution to the work and approved it for publication.
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.
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References
1. Shehata AM, Paswan VK, Attia YA, Abdel-Moneim A-ME, Abougabal MS, Sharaf M, et al. Managing gut microbiota through in ovo nutrition influences early-life programming in broiler chickens. Animals. (2021) 11:3491. doi: 10.3390/ani11123491
2. Shehata AM, Paswan VK, Attia YA, Abougabal MS, Khamis T, Alqosaibi AI, et al. In ovo inoculation of bacillus subtilis and raffinose affects growth performance, cecal microbiota, volatile fatty acid, ileal morphology and gene expression, and sustainability of broiler chickens (Gallus gallus). Front Nutr. (2022) 9:903847. doi: 10.3389/fnut.2022.903847
3. Abdel-Moneim A-ME, Elbaz AM, Khidr RE-S, Badri FB. Effect of in ovo inoculation of Bifidobacterium spp. on growth performance, thyroid activity, ileum histomorphometry, and microbial enumeration of broilers. Probiotics Antimicrob Proteins. (2019) 12:873–82. doi: 10.1007/s12602-019-09613-x
4. Abdel-Moneim AEME, El-Wardany I, Abu-Taleb AM, Wakwak MM, Ebeid TA, Saleh AA. Assessment of in ovo administration of Bifidobacterium bifidum and Bifidobacterium longum on performance, ileal histomorphometry, blood hematological, and biochemical parameters of broilers. Probiotics Antimicrob Proteins. (2019) 12:439–50. doi: 10.1007/s12602-019-09549-2
5. Abdel-Moneim A-ME, Shehata AM, Mohamed NG, Elbaz AM, Ibrahim NS. Synergistic effect of Spirulina platensis and selenium nanoparticles on growth performance, serum metabolites, immune responses, and antioxidant capacity of heat-stressed broiler chickens. Biol Trace Elem Res. (2021) 200:768–79. doi: 10.1007/s12011-021-02662-w
6. Elnesr SS, Elwan HAM, El Sabry MI, Shehata AM, Alagawany M. Impact of chitosan on productive and physiological performance and gut health of poultry. Worlds Poult Sci J. (2022)78:483–98. doi: 10.1080/00439339.2022.2041992
7. Abdel-Moneim AE, Shehata AM, Alzahrani SO, Shafi ME, Mesalam NM, Taha AE, et al. The role of polyphenols in poultry nutrition. J Anim Physiol Anim Nutr. (2020) 104:1851–66. doi: 10.1111/jpn.13455
8. Abd El-Hack ME, El-Saadony MT, Shehata AM, Arif M, Paswan VK, Batiha GE-S, et al. Approaches to prevent and control Campylobacter spp. colonization in broiler chickens: a review. Environ Sci Pollut Res. (2020) 28:4989–5004. doi: 10.1007/s11356-020-11747-3
9. Elbaz AM, Ibrahim NS, Shehata AM, Mohamed NG, Abdel-Moneim A-ME. Impact of multi-strain probiotic, citric acid, garlic powder or their combinations on performance, ileal histomorphometry, microbial enumeration and humoral immunity of broiler chickens. Trop Anim Health Prod. (2021) 53:115. doi: 10.1007/s11250-021-02554-0
Keywords: early-life programming, in-ovo feeding, early nutrition, environmental manipulation, gut health, immune system, antibiotic alternatives, poultry
Citation: Abdel-Moneim A-ME, Shehata AM and Paswan VK (2023) Editorial: Early life programming in poultry: Recent insights and interventional approaches. Front. Vet. Sci. 9:1105653. doi: 10.3389/fvets.2022.1105653
Received: 22 November 2022; Accepted: 12 December 2022;
Published: 05 January 2023.
Edited and reviewed by: Domenico Bergero, University of Turin, Italy
Copyright © 2023 Abdel-Moneim, Shehata and Paswan. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
*Correspondence: Abdel-Moneim Eid Abdel-Moneim, 
aeabdelmoneim@gmail.com