Bioremediation role of Spirulina platensis against deltamethrin-mediated toxicity and its chemical residues in chicken meat

Effect of Cumulative Spirulina Intake on Broiler Meat Quality, Nutritional and Health-Related Attributes

This work aimed to assess how different cumulative levels of Spirulina (Arthrospira platensis) intake influence individual broiler meat quality parameters, nutritional value and health-related traits. The data analysed showed varying cumulative Spirulina intake levels, ranging from 3.46 to 521 g/bird, with large changes in meat traits. The key findings indicate that Spirulina intake significantly enhances meat colour, primarily due to its rich carotenoid content. However, this enhancement shows a saturation effect at higher intake levels, where additional Spirulina does not further improve the colour. Regarding the meat nutritional profile, Spirulina increases beneficial n - 3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and reduces lipid oxidation. These effects on meat, however, are not linear and become more complex at higher microalga intake levels. Regarding meat sensory attributes, moderate Spirulina levels positively influence flavour and texture. Still, higher levels may lead to changes not universally preferred by meat consumers, highlighting the need for balanced Spirulina inclusion in diets. Optimal Spirulina cumulative intake levels must be identified to balance meat's nutritional benefits with consumer preferences. Additionally, ensuring Spirulina's purity and adherence to regulatory standards is essential for consumer safety and market access. These findings provide valuable insights for poultry nutritionists and the food industry, emphasising the necessity of a balanced approach to Spirulina's incorporation in poultry diets.

The influence of Spirulina extract on pathogenicity, immune response, and vaccine efficacy against H9N2 avian influenza virus in specific pathogen free chickens

Avian influenza (AI) viruses pose a risk to the worldwide poultry industry. Ultimately, improving the efficiency of the H9N2 vaccine is necessary to better control low-pathogenic avian influenza-H9N2 by using natural immunostimulant. Therefore, the goal of the present study was to examine varying doses of the cyanobacterium Spirulina extract on the effectiveness of H9N2 vaccine. Thus, a total of 150 specific pathogen-free (SPF) chickens were allocated into 6 groups, 25 birds each, as follow: G1, G2, and G6 were supplemented with 200, 400, and 400 mg Spirulina extract/kg feed, respectively, whilst the feed in G3, G4, and G5 were not supplemented with Spirulina extract. At 21-days-old, only the chickens in G1, G2, and G3 were vaccinated with the H9N2 AI vaccine. After 4 wk postvaccination, the chickens in G1, G2, G3, G4, and G6 were challenged with H9N2 AI Egyptian strain. The challenged virus was selected from a recent circulating Egyptian strain during 2022, and it was related to A/quail/Hong Kong/G1/97-like virus lineage and clustered with G1-B sub-lineage EGY-2 group. It had a high amino acids identity percentage of 92.6% with the A/chicken/Iran/av1221/1998 (Boehringer Ingelheim) vaccine. The results of real-time reverse-transcriptase polymerase-chain-reaction (rRT-PCR) revealed that no shedding of the virus was reported in G1, G2, G3, and G5. The supplementation of Spirulina extract in low (200 mg/kg of feed) and high (400 mg/kg of feed) concentration with the birds vaccinated with H9N2 AI vaccine (G1 and G2) induced prominent immuno-stimulatory effect in a dose dependent manner where it strongly enhanced the phagocytic activities of broilers' peripheral blood monocytes, and lysozyme at all days postvaccination (dpv) and days postchallenge (dpc) compared to other groups with significant differences at all day of experiment and 21st dpv, 28th dpv, 7th dpc, and 14th dpc, respectively. The supplementation with Spirulina extract in G1 and G2 induced the highest hemagglutination inhibition antibody titer in a dose-dependent manner at all-time intervals. The antibody titer postvaccination was significantly increased in G1 and G2 at 14th, and 21st dpv, in comparison with G3. Furthermore, G1 and G2 showed higher significant antibody titers at 7th and 14th dpc, compared to other groups. Furthermore, Spirulina extract (200 and 400 mg/kg feed) in G1 and G2 showed anti-inflammatory effect in a dose dependant manner by downregulating nitric oxide levels at all times postchallenge with a significant difference at 3 to 7 dpc compared to G3, G4, and G6, with improved histopathological alterations in the trachea, lung, kidney, spleen, and bursa of Fabricius.  G6 supplied with 400 mg/kg Spirulina extract feed only without vaccination had a similar effect as vaccinated groups on innate immunity. However, it delayed the production of antibodies and did not prevent viral shedding as in vaccinated groups. In conclusion, vaccination in conjunction with either dose of Spirulina extract (G1, and G2) prevents viral shedding, increases the immune response, and reduces inflammation and histopathological change caused by H9N2 AI infection in a dose dependent manner. We recommend the use of 400 mg Spirulina extract/kg feed as a natural immunostimulant in conjunction with the H9N2 vaccine to achieve the highest possible level of protection against H9N2 AI infection.

Distribution and Elimination of Deltamethrin Toxicity in Laying Hens

Deltamethrin, an important pyrethroid insecticide, is frequently detected in human samples. This study aims to assess the potential effects of deltamethrin on human health and investigate the patterns of residue enrichment and elimination in 112 healthy laying hens. These hens were administered 20 mg·kg-1 deltamethrin based on their body weight. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was used to investigate the residue enrichment pattern and elimination pattern of deltamethrin in the hens. The results indicated a significant increase in the concentration of deltamethrin in chicken manure during the treatment period. By the 14th day of administration, the concentration of deltamethrin in the stool reached 13,510.9 ± 172.24 μg·kg-1, with a fecal excretion rate of 67.56%. The pulmonary deltamethrin concentration was the second highest at 3844.98 ± 297.14 μg·kg-1. These findings suggest that chicken feces contain substantial amounts of deltamethrin after 14 days of continuous administration, and that it can easily transfer to the lungs. After 21 days of drug withdrawal, the residual concentration of deltamethrin in the fat of laying hens was 904.25 ± 295.32 μg·kg-1, with a half-life of 17 days and a slow elimination rate. In contrast, the lungs showed relatively low elimination half-lives of 0.2083 days, indicating faster elimination of deltamethrin in this tissue. These results highlight differences in the rate of deltamethrin elimination in different tissues during drug withdrawal. The fat of laying hens exhibited the highest residue of deltamethrin and the slowest elimination rate, while the lungs showed the fastest elimination rate. Moreover, deltamethrin was found to accumulate in the edible tissues of eggs and laying hens, suggesting that humans may be exposed to deltamethrin through food.

Curcumin protects against fenvalerate-induced neurotoxicity in zebrafish (Danio rerio) larvae through inhibition of oxidative stress

Fenvalerate (FEN), a typical type II pyrethroid pesticide, is widely used in agriculture. FEN has been detected in the environment and human body. However, the neurotoxicity of FEN has not been well elucidated. This study aimed to explore the mechanisms underlying FEN-induced neurotoxicity using the zebrafish (Danio rerio) model. We also investigated whether curcumin (CUR), a polyphenol antioxidant that exhibits neuroprotective properties, can prevent FEN-induced neurotoxicity. Here, zebrafish embryos were exposed to 0, 3.5, 7 and 14 μg/L of FEN from 4 to 96 h post fertilization (hpf) and neurotoxicity was assessed. Our results showed that FEN decreased the survival rate, heart rate, body length and spontaneous movement, and increased malformation rate. FEN caused neurobehavioral alterations, including decreased swimming distance and velocity, movement time and clockwise rotation times. FEN also suppressed neurogenesis in transgenic HuC:egfp zebrafish, reduced cholinesterase activity and downregulated the expression of neurodevelopment related genes (elavl3, gfap, gap43 and mbp). In addition, FEN enhanced oxidative stress via excessive reactive oxygen species and antioxidant enzyme inhibition, then triggered apoptosis by upregulation of apoptotic genes (p53, bcl-2, bax and caspase 3). These adverse outcomes were alleviated by CUR, indicating that CUR mitigated FEN-induced neurotoxicity by inhibiting oxidative stress. Overall, this study revealed that CUR ameliorated FEN-induced neurotoxicity via its antioxidant, indicating a promising protection of CUR against environmental pollutant-induced developmental anomalies.

Potential of Spirulina platensis as a feed supplement for poultry to enhance growth performance and immune modulation

Increase in drug resistance as well as ineffective immunization efforts against various pathogens (viruses, bacteria and fungi) pose a significant threat to the poultry industry. Spirulina is one of the most widely used natural ingredients which is becoming popular as a nutritional supplement in humans, animals, poultry and aquaculture. It contains protein, vitamins, minerals, fatty acids, pigments, and essential amino acids. Moreover, it also has considerable quantities of unique natural antioxidants including polyphenols, carotenoids, and phycocyanin. Dietary supplementation of Spirulina can beneficially affect gut microbial population, serum biochemical parameters, and growth performance of chicken. Additionally, it contains polyphenolic contents having antibacterial effects. Spirulina extracts might inhibit bacterial motility, invasion, biofilm formation, and quorum sensing in addition to acting directly on the bacterium by weakening and making the bacterial cell walls more porous, subsequently resulting in cytoplasmic content leakage. Additionally, Spirulina has shown antiviral activities against certain common human or animal viruses and this capability can be considered to exhibit potential benefits against avian viruses also. Spirulan, a calcium-rich internal polysaccharide of Spirulina, is potentially responsible for its antiviral effect through inhibiting the entry of several viruses into the host cells, boosting the production of nitric oxide in macrophages, and stimulating the generation of cytokines. Comparatively a greater emphasis has been given to the immune modulatory effects of Spirulina as a feed additive in chicken which might boost disease resistance and improve survival and growth rates, particularly under stress conditions. This manuscript reviews biological activities and immune-stimulating properties of Spirulina and its potential use as a dietary supplement in poultry to enhance growth, gut health and disease resistance.

Oral administration of Bacillus cereus GW-01 alleviates the accumulation and detrimental effects of β-cypermethrin in mice

Pyrethroid insecticides negatively affect feed conversion, reproductive fitness, and food safety in exposed animals. Although probiotics have previously been widely studied for their effect on gut health, comparatively little is known regarding the efficacy of probiotic administration in specifically reducing pesticide toxicity in mice. We demonstrated that oral administration of a β-cypermethrin (β-CY)-degrading bacterial strain (Bacillus cereus GW-01) to β-CY-exposed mice reduced β-CY levels in the liver, kidney, brain, blood, lipid, and feces (18%-53%). Additionally, co-administration of strain GW-01 to β-CY-exposed mice reduced weight loss (22%-31%) and improved liver function (15%-19%) in mice. Additionally, mice receiving GW-01 had near-control levels of numerous β-CY-affected gut microbial taxa, including Muribaculaceae, Alloprevotella, Bacteroides, Dubosiella, and Alistipes. The survival and β-CY biosorption of GW-01 in simulated gastrointestinal fluid conditions were significantly higher than E. coli. These results suggested that GW-01 can reduce β-CY accumulation and alleviate the damage in mice. This study is the first to demonstrate that a probiotic strain can reduce the toxicity of β-CY in mice.

The Preferential Therapeutic Potential of Chlorella vulgaris against Aflatoxin-Induced Hepatic Injury in Quail

Aflatoxins (AFs) are the most detrimental mycotoxin, potentially hazardous to animals and humans. AFs in food threaten the health of consumers and cause liver cancer. Therefore, a safe, efficient, and friendly approach is attributed to the control of aflatoxicosis. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the impacts of Chlorella vulgaris (CLV) on hepatic aflatoxicosis, aflatoxin residues, and meat quality in quails. Quails were allocated into a control group; the CLV group received CLV (1 g/kg diet); the AF group received an AF-contaminated diet (50 ppb); and the AF+CLV group received both treatments. The results revealed that AF decreased the growth performance and caused a hepatic injury, exhibited as an increase in liver enzymes and disrupted lipid metabolism. In addition, AF induced oxidative stress, exhibited by a dramatic increase in the malondialdehyde (MDA) level and decreases in glutathione (GSH) level, superoxide dismutase (SOD), and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activities. Significant up-regulation in the inflammatory cytokine (TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6) mRNA expression was also documented. Moreover, aflatoxin residues were detected in the liver and meat with an elevation of fat% alongside a decrease in meat protein%. On the other hand, CLV supplementation ameliorated AF-induced oxidative stress and inflammatory condition in addition to improving the nutritional value of meat and significantly reducing AF residues. CLV mitigated AF-induced hepatic damage, decreased growth performance, and lowered meat quality via its antioxidant and nutritional constituents.

Ameliorative effect of N-acetylcysteine on the testicular tissue of adult male albino rats after glyphosate-based herbicide exposure

Glyphosate (GLP) is a broad-spectrum herbicide that is frequently used in crop production, but its residues remain in foodstuffs. This, in turn, has led to potential adverse effects on both human and animal health. Recent studies emphasized that GLP induces teratogenic effects and reproductive disorders, but its mechanism of toxicity is highly debated. N-acetylcysteine (NAC) is well known for its potent antioxidant capacity in addition to anti-inflammatory and cytoprotective properties. Therefore, our study aimed to investigate the reproductive toxicity of GLP in mature rats and evaluate the possible ameliorative effect of NAC against this toxicity. To this end, 30 adult male rats were assigned into three groups (10 rats per group) as follows: Group I, negative control; group II, GLP-exposed; 375 mg/kg GLP, orally; group III, NAC-cotreated, 160 mg/kg NAC 1 h before GLP, plus GLP, 375 mg/kg orally for 6 weeks. At the end of the experiment, the testicles were collected for semen analysis and biochemical, histopathological, and immunohistochemical studies. GLP-exposed rats exhibited disturbances in seminal parameters and a significant increase in malondialdehyde levels and expression of apoptotic markers. Several histopathological changes were observed, including strong immunoreactions for caspase-3 and proliferating cell nuclear antigen. Conversely, the administration of NAC before GLP was able to improve seminal parameters, attenuate the induced oxidative stress and apoptosis in addition to the regeneration of testicular damage. In conclusion, NAC can ameliorate the reproductive toxicity induced by GLP to an acceptable degree.

N-Acetylcysteine Alleviated the Deltamethrin-Induced Oxidative Cascade and Apoptosis in Liver and Kidney Tissues

Deltamethrin (DLM) is a synthetic pyrethroid with anti-acaricide and insecticidal properties. It is commonly used in agriculture and veterinary medicine. Humans and animals are exposed to DLM through the ingestion of polluted food and water, resulting in severe health issues. N-acetylcysteine (NAC) is a prodrug of L-cysteine, the precursor to glutathione. It can restore the oxidant-antioxidant balance. Therefore, this research aimed to examine whether NAC may protect broiler chickens against oxidative stress, at the level of biochemical and molecular alterations caused by DLM intoxication. The indicators of liver and kidney injury in the serum of DLM-intoxicated and NAC-treated groups were examined. Furthermore, lipid peroxidation, antioxidant markers, superoxide dismutase activity, and apoptotic gene expressions (caspase-3 and Bcl-2) were investigated. All parameters were significantly altered in the DLM-intoxicated group, suggesting that DLM could induce oxidative damage and apoptosis in hepato-renal tissue. The majority of the changes in the studied parameters were reversed when NAC therapy was used. In conclusion, by virtue of its antioxidant and antiapoptotic properties, NAC enabled the provision of significant protection effects against DLM-induced hepato-renal injury.