title: Dietary Administration ofBacillus subtilisEnhances Growth Performance, Immune Response and Disease Resistance in Cherry Valley Ducks.
abstract: Given the promising results of applyingBacillus subtilis(B.subtilis) as a probiotic in both humans and animals, the aim of this study was to systematically investigate the effects ofB. subtilison growth performance, immune response and disease resistance in Cherry Valley ducks. At 28 d post-hatch (dph), ducks fed a diet withB. subtilisweighed significantly more, had higher relative immune organ weights (e.g., bursa of Fabricius, thymus, and spleen), and exhibited greater villus heights, villus height to crypt depth ratios (duodenum and jejunum), and shallower crypt depths in the duodenum than controls fed a normal diet (p< 0.05). Moreover, the major pro-inflammatory factors and antiviral proteins, as measured in the thymus and the spleen, were higher at 28 dph in ducks fed probiotics than those of 14 dph. After 28 d of feeding, the ducks were challenged withEscherichia coli(E. coli) and novel duck reovirus (NDRV), and ducks fedB. subtilisachieved survival rates of 43.3 and 100%, respectively, which were significantly greater than the control group's 20 and 83.3%. Altogether, diets withB. subtiliscan improve Cherry Valley ducks' growth performance, innate immune response, and resistance againstE. coliand NDRV.
authors.affiliation: College of Veterinary Medicine, Sino-German Cooperative Research Centre for Zoonosis of Animal Origin of Shandong Province, Shandong Agricultural UniversityTai'an, China; Collaborative Innovation Centre for the Origin and Control of Emerging Infectious Diseases of Taishan Medical CollegeTai'an, China.
authors.forename: Mengjiao
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.affiliation: College of Veterinary Medicine, Sino-German Cooperative Research Centre for Zoonosis of Animal Origin of Shandong Province, Shandong Agricultural UniversityTai'an, China; Collaborative Innovation Centre for the Origin and Control of Emerging Infectious Diseases of Taishan Medical CollegeTai'an, China.
authors.forename: Guangen
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Hao
authors.affiliation: College of Veterinary Medicine, Sino-German Cooperative Research Centre for Zoonosis of Animal Origin of Shandong Province, Shandong Agricultural University Tai'an, China.
authors.forename: Baohua
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: College of Veterinary Medicine, Sino-German Cooperative Research Centre for Zoonosis of Animal Origin of Shandong Province, Shandong Agricultural UniversityTai'an, China; Collaborative Innovation Centre for the Origin and Control of Emerging Infectious Diseases of Taishan Medical CollegeTai'an, China.
authors.forename: Ning
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: College of Veterinary Medicine, Sino-German Cooperative Research Centre for Zoonosis of Animal Origin of Shandong Province, Shandong Agricultural UniversityTai'an, China; Collaborative Innovation Centre for the Origin and Control of Emerging Infectious Diseases of Taishan Medical CollegeTai'an, China.
authors.forename: Rong
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: College of Veterinary Medicine, Sino-German Cooperative Research Centre for Zoonosis of Animal Origin of Shandong Province, Shandong Agricultural UniversityTai'an, China; Collaborative Innovation Centre for the Origin and Control of Emerging Infectious Diseases of Taishan Medical CollegeTai'an, China.
authors.forename: Liangmeng
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wei
authors.affiliation: College of Veterinary Medicine, Sino-German Cooperative Research Centre for Zoonosis of Animal Origin of Shandong Province, Shandong Agricultural UniversityTai'an, China; Collaborative Innovation Centre for the Origin and Control of Emerging Infectious Diseases of Taishan Medical CollegeTai'an, China.
authors.forename: Tongjie
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Chai
keywords: Bacillus subtilis; Cherry Valley duck; disease resistance; growth performance; innate immunity; probiotics