β-Glucan successfully stimulated the immune system in different jawed vertebrate species

• Published in: Comparative immunology, microbiology and infectious diseases Vol. 62; pp. 1 - 6
• Main Authors: de Oliveira, Carlos A.F., Vetvicka, Vaclav, Zanuzzo, Fábio S.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 01.02.2019; Elsevier Science Ltd
• Subjects: Adaptive Immunity; Animal Feed; Animals; beta-Glucans - metabolism; Chicken; Chicks; Design of experiments; Dietary Supplements; Dog; Dogs; Experimental design; Female; Glucan; Glucans; Immune response; Immune system; Immune System - immunology; Immune System - metabolism; Immunity, Innate; Innate immunity; Interleukin 2; Juveniles; Leukocytes (neutrophilic); Male; Mice; Monocytes; Pattern recognition; Phagocytosis; Phagocytosis - immunology; Piglets; Species; Swine; Vertebrates; β-Glucan; Mice; Chicken; Immune response; β-Glucan; Piglets; Dog
• ISSN: 0147-9571; 1878-1667
• DOI: 10.1016/j.cimid.2018.11.006

•Diets with two β-glucan molecules were examined in four vertebrate species.•β-Glucans exhibited different magnitudes of effects on immune responses.•β-Glucans promoted immune stimulation in immune responses in all species. Several reports have shown the positive effects of β-glucans on the immune. Howeverthese studies have a broad experimental design including β-glucans compounds. Consequently, a study using the same β-glucan molecule, administration route and experimental design is needed to compare the effects of β-glucan across vertebrate species. For this end, during 28 days we fed four different vertebrate species: mice, dogs, piglets and chicks, with two β-glucan molecules (BG01 and BG02). We measured the serum interleukin 2 as an indicator of innate immune response, the neutrophils and monocytes phagocytosis index as a cellular response and antibody formation as an adaptive response. The results clearly showed that the different β-glucan molecules exhibited biologically differently behaviors, but both molecules stimulate the immune system in a similar pattern in these four species. This finding suggests that vertebrates shared similar mechanisms/patterns in recognizing the β-glucans and confirms the benefits of β-glucans across different vertebrate species.