Antibiotic growth promoters (AGPs) have been used as growth promoters to maintain animal intestinal health and improve feed efficiency in broilers by inhibiting pathogen proliferation. In view of the growing emergence of antibiotic-resistant pathogen strains and drug residue issues, novel treatments are increasingly required. This study aimed to compare two antimicrobial approaches for managing pathogen infection and maintaining animal intestinal health in broilers by supplying Apidaecin Api-PR19 and AGPs over 42 d of a feeding trial. Compared with the broilers that were only fed a corn-soybean basal diet (CON group), supplementation with Api-PR19 and AGP (respectively named the ABP and AGP groups) both increased the feed conversion efficiency. When compared with the AGP group, Api-PR19 supplementation could significantly increase the organ index of the bursa of fabricius and subtype H9 antibody level in broiler chickens. Moreover, when compared with the CON group, the intestinal villus height, intestinal nutrient transport, and intestinal sIgA content were all increased in the Api-PR19 group, while AGP supplementation was harmful to the intestinal villus height and intestinal nutrient transport. By assessing the antibacterial effect of Api-PR19 and antibiotics in vitro and in vivo, we found that Api-PR19 and antibiotics both inhibited the growth of pathogens, including Escherichia coli and Campylobacter jejuni. Furthermore, by using 16S rRNA gene sequencing, the beneficial bacteria and microbiota in broilers were not disturbed but improved by apidaecin Api-PR19, including the genera of Eubacterium and Christensenella and the species of uncultured_Eubacterium_sp, Clostridium_asparagiforme, and uncultured_Christensenella_sp, which were positively related to improved intestinal development, absorption, and immune function. Apidaecin Api-PR19 treatment could combat pathogen infection and had little negative impact on beneficial bacteria in the gut compared to antibiotic treatment, subsequently improving intestinal development, absorption, and immune function.

中文翻译：

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一种新的apidaecin Api-PR19与肠道微生物群落协同作用以维持肠道健康并促进肉鸡的生长性能。

抗生素生长促进剂 (AGP) 已被用作生长促进剂，通过抑制病原体增殖来维持动物肠道健康并提高肉鸡的饲料效率。鉴于抗生素耐药性病原体菌株和药物残留问题的日益出现，越来越需要新的治疗方法。本研究旨在通过在 42 天的饲喂试验中提供 Apidaecin Api-PR19 和 AGP 来比较两种抗菌方法，用于管理肉鸡的病原体感染和维持动物肠道健康。与仅饲喂玉米-大豆基础日粮（CON组）的肉鸡相比，添加Api-PR19和AGP（分别称为ABP和AGP组）均提高了饲料转化率。与 AGP 组相比，补充Api-PR19可显着提高肉鸡法氏囊器官指数和H9亚型抗体水平。此外，与CON组相比，Api-PR19组的肠绒毛高度、肠道营养转运和肠道sIgA含量均增加，而补充AGP对肠绒毛高度和肠道营养转运有害。通过评估 Api-PR19 和抗生素在体外和体内的抗菌作用，我们发现 Api-PR19 和抗生素都抑制了病原体的生长，包括大肠杆菌和空肠弯曲杆菌。此外，通过使用 16S rRNA 基因测序，apidaecin Api-PR19 未干扰但改善了肉鸡中的有益细菌和微生物群，包括 Eubacterium 和 Christensenella 属以及 uncultured_Eubacterium_sp、Clostridium_asparagiforme 和 uncultured_Christensenella_sp 的种，它们与改善肠道发育、吸收和免疫功能呈正相关。Apidaecin Api-PR19 治疗可以对抗病原体感染，与抗生素治疗相比，对肠道有益菌的负面影响很小，从而改善肠道发育、吸收和免疫功能。