Protective effect of Polygonatum sibiricum polysaccharide on cyclophosphamide-induced immunosuppression in chickens

• Published in: Research in veterinary science Vol. 135; pp. 96 - 105
• Main Authors: Shu, Gang, Xu, Dan, Zhao, Jin, Yin, Lizi, Lin, Juchun, Fu, Hualin, Tang, Huaqiao, Fang, Jing, Peng, Xi, Zhao, Xiaoling
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 01-03-2021; Elsevier Limited
• Subjects: Animal Feed - analysis; Animals; Antibodies; Antioxidants; Apoptosis; Aquatic plants; Biochemical analysis; Broilers; Bursa of Fabricius; Chickens; Conversion ratio; Cyclophosphamide; Cyclophosphamide - pharmacology; Diet; Diet - veterinary; Dietary supplements; Dietary Supplements - analysis; Disease; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Drug dosages; Feed conversion; Gene expression; Growth performance; Immunity; Immunoglobulins; Immunologic Factors - administration & dosage; Immunologic Factors - metabolism; Immunologic Factors - pharmacology; Immunostimulants; Immunosuppression; Immunosuppression - veterinary; Immunosuppressive Agents - pharmacology; Influenza; Interleukin 2; Interleukin 6; Laboratory animals; Lymphocytes; Lymphocytes T; Male; Mortality; Organs; Performance indices; Peripheral blood; Polygonatum - chemistry; Polygonatum sibiricum polysaccharide; Polysaccharides; Polysaccharides - administration & dosage; Polysaccharides - metabolism; Polysaccharides - pharmacology; Poultry; Poultry Diseases - prevention & control; Random Allocation; Rhizomes; Serum proteins; Spleen; Structure-function relationships; Thymus gland; Veterinary medicine; Viruses; γ-Interferon; China; Cyclophosphamide; Polygonatum sibiricum polysaccharide; Broilers; Immunity; Growth performance
• ISSN: 0034-5288; 1532-2661
• DOI: 10.1016/j.rvsc.2020.12.025

The purpose of the study was to evaluate the protective effects of polygonatum sibiricum polysaccharide (PP), an important component of rhizome polygonatum, on cyclophosphamide (CY) induced immunosuppressed chickens. Four hundred and eighty one-day-old Erlang mountainous chickens were randomly allocated into four treatments. The main factors consisted of dietary supplement (PP at 0 or 800 mg/kg of diet) and immunosuppressive challenge (birds challenged with CY or treated with sterile saline). The results showed that PP enhanced chickens' growth performance via elevating daily weight gain (DWG), serum protein production, and decreasing feed conversion ratio (FCR). Moreover, physical measurements revealed that PP accelerated recovery of relative weights of immune organs and maintained their structure and function. Biochemical analysis indicated that PP significantly stimulated immunoglobulin and antioxidant indexes in serum, and improved the proliferation of peripheral blood T lymphocytes. In addition, PP promoted immune organs cells to enter into S and G2/M phases as well as inhibited the apoptosis in the spleen, thymus, and bursa of Fabricius. PP up regulated the expression of IL-2, IL-6 and IFN-γ genes. Therefore, PP performs a profile in antagonizing Cy-induced immunosuppression in chickens, and it seems that PP can be used as a potential immunostimulant agent.
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•Cyclophosphamide exposure induced immunosuppression and growth inhibition in broilers.•PP can protect the immune organs from oxidative stress by increasing serum antioxidant indices in broilers.•PP can maintain the integrity of immune organ cells morphology and regulate the expression of IL-2, IL-6 and IFN-γ genes in immune organs in broilers.•Supplementation of Polygonatum sibiricum polysaccharide possesses therapeutic potential for immunosuppression, and may potentially act as an immunostimulant.