Effects of Lipoic Acid on Immune Function, the Antioxidant Defense System, and Inflammation-Related Genes Expression of Broiler Chickens Fed Aflatoxin Contaminated Diets

International Journal of Molecular Sciences

Yan Li¹  Qiu-Gang Ma¹  Li-Hong Zhao¹  Hua Wei²  Guo-Xiang Duan¹  Jian-Yun Zhang¹ 

[1] State Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition, College of Animal Science & Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China; E-Mails:;Translational Medicine Lab, Chinese National Human Genome Center, Beijing 100176, China; E-Mail:

关键词: lipoic acid;    aflatoxin;    alleviate;    inflammation;    chickens;   

DOI  :  10.3390/ijms15045649

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

This study was designed to evaluate the effect of low level of Aflatoxin B₁ (AFB₁) on oxidative stress, immune reaction and inflammation response and the possible ameliorating effects of dietary alpha-lipoic acid (α-LA) in broilers. Birds were randomly allocated into three groups and assigned to receive different diets: basal diet, diet containing 74 μg/kg AFB₁, and 300 mg/kg α-LA supplementation in diet containing 74 μg/kg AFB₁ for three weeks. The results showed that the serum levels of malondialdehyde, tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα) and interferon gamma (IFNγ) in the AFB₁-treated group were significantly increased than the control group. In addition, the increased expressions of interleukin 6 (IL6), TNFα and IFNγ were observed in birds exposed to the AFB₁-contaminated diet. These degenerative changes were inhibited by α-LA-supplement. The activities of total superoxide dismutase and glutathione peroxidase, the levels of humoral immunity, and the expressions of nuclear factor-κB p65 and heme oxygenase-1, however, were not affected by AFB₁. The results suggest that α-LA alleviates AFB₁ induced oxidative stress and immune changes and modulates the inflammatory response at least partly through changes in the expression of proinflammatory cytokines of spleen such as IL6 and TNFα in broiler chickens.

【 授权许可】

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