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Since the removal of in feed antibiotics in the past few years commercial poultry production is especially sensitive to the health of the small intestine. Healthy small intestines balance nutrient absorption and defensive barrier functions to ensure the chicken is able to meet the whole-body nutritional needs and is able to help prevent internalization of pathogens or potentially toxic components. This balance can only be maintained under stable conditions. When a disturbance event occurs the intestine imbalances until a new, and less efficient, balance can be achieved. The objective of this dissertation is to propose a novel model to understanding intestinal homeostasis in the face of various disturbance events. Chapter 2 investigated the effects of Runting Stunting Syndrome on broiler chickens in four different groups of chicks displaying clinical symptoms. The major finding in this study was that in two of the four groups the expression of stem cell gene Olfactomedin 4 was absent from the crypt though other functional genes were found to still be expressed there. Chapter 3 characterized intestinal gene expression following a single challenge of Eimeria acervulina in broiler chickens. During Eimeria infection gene expression of multiple host defense peptide genes were decreased compared to uninfected chickens. Further, Eimeria infected chickens increased cell proliferation within the crypt and post-peak infection showed signs of intestinal recovery. Additionally, chapter 3 developed a novel method for visualizing Eimeria as it infects the intestine. In chapters 4 and 5 cell type population changes during the peri-hatch intestinal maturation process were evaluated. Peri-hatch intestinal maturation is critical for the successful transition from embryonic to post-hatch life. Chapter 4 profiled changes in proliferative cells and gene expression of various stem cell marker genes during the peri-hatch period: the last three days of embryogenesis and the first week post-hatch. The stem cell marker gene Leucine Rich Repeat Containing G Protein-Coupled Receptor 5 (Lgr5) decreased during the post-hatch period while Olfactomedin 4 increased post-hatch. Both stem cell genes were expressed within the intestinal crypt, though prior to hatch Lgr5 was expressed in the lamina propria and villi as well. Additionally, the marker of proliferation Ki67 gene was expressed in cells throughout the intestine prior to hatch but became restricted to the crypts and along the center of the villi. Chapter 5 assessed the effect of providing probiotics to late term embryos via in ovo feeding (IOF). The effects of IOF were primarily observed on embryonic day 20 (e20), roughly 48 hours after IOF. On e20 the embryos in ovo fed probiotics in saline had increased expression in the ileum of Peptide Transporter 1 (PepT1) a marker gene for enterocytes and Mucin-2 (Muc2) a marker gene for goblet cells compared to non-injected control embryos. Also, on e20 the embryos in ovo fed saline only had numerically increased PepT1 and Muc2 compared to non-injected control embryos. The difference in responses between the probiotic and saline fed embryos on e20 suggests different routes of stimulation. These investigations illustrate various possible scenarios and means of investigating intestinal homeostasis during disturbance events. / Doctor of Philosophy / In healthy birds, the small intestine absorbs nutrients while preventing the free passage of microbes or toxic chemicals into the body. The two functions: absorption and barrier exclusion seem contradictory, but a balance is struck to ensure both functions continue. This balance-point, homeostasis, persists until an event disturbs it. Once disturbed the balance-point is changed and the intestine is unable to maintain both functions, until a new balance is found following recovery. The objective of the dissertation is to better understand intestinal homeostasis, through four different research projects. Experiment 1 characterized the intestinal cell population changes in broiler chickens during Runting Stunting Syndrome, a viral infection. The major finding of this chapter was that a stem cell gene, that is normally robustly expressed was not expressed in some groups of infected chicks but not all. Experiment 2 investigated the intestinal response of broiler chickens to Eimeria acervulina, an intestinal parasitic infection. Eimeria, which infects intestinal enterocytes, caused a decrease in defensive genes during the peak of infection. Then after the peak the intestine began to recover, as indicated by increased cell proliferation. Experiment 3 profiled changes in the expression patterns of stem cell and proliferation genes in the small intestine during the last days before hatch and the first week post-hatch. Pre-hatch stem and proliferative gene expression occurred in the crypt and villus, but became restricted to the crypt early during the post-hatch period. Experiment 4 assessed the effect of feeding probiotics to embryos before hatching on intestinal gene expression. Embryos fed probiotics had increased Mucin-2 and Peptide Transporter 1 gene expression in the last segment of the intestine, the ileum compared to non-fed embryos 48 hours after feeding. Additionally, treatments fed saline also showed increased gene expression, though to a lesser extent. Together these projects illustrate various disturbances to intestinal homeostasis and how intestinal cells change and respond during the disturbance and recovery periods.

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Thesis (M. Sc.)--York University, 1999. Graduate Programme in Biology. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 82-92). Also available on the Internet. MODE OF ACCESS via web browser by entering the following URL: http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/yorku/fullcit?pMQ56172.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Adelaide, Dept. of Medicine, 1998. / Erratum is pasted onto back end-paper. Bibliography: leaves 164-207.

Thesis (M.S.)--Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 1992. / Vita. Abstract. Includes bibliographical references. Also available via the Internet.

The dense and diverse community of microorganisms inhabiting the gastrointestinal tract of ruminant animals plays critical roles in the metabolism and absorption of nutrients, and gut associated immune function. Understanding microbial colonization in the small intestine of new born ruminants is a vital first step toward manipulating gut function through interventions during early life to produce long-term positive effects on host productivity and health. Yet the knowledge of microbiota colonization and its induced metabolites of small intestine during early life is still limited. In the present study, we examined the microbiota and metabolome in the jejunum and ileum of neonatal sika deer (Cervus nippon) from birth to weaning at days 1, 42, and 70. The microbial data showed that diversity and richness were increased with age, but a highly individual variation was observed at day 1. Principal coordinate analysis revealed significant differences in microbial community composition across three time points in the jejunum and ileum. The abundance of Halomonas spp., Lactobacillus spp., Escherichia-Shigella, and Bacteroides spp. tended to be decreased, while the proportion of Intestinibacter spp., Cellulosilyticum spp., Turicibacter spp., Clostridium sensu stricto 1 and Romboutsia spp. was significantly increased with age. For metabolome, metabolites separated from each other across the three time points in both jejunum and ileum. Moreover, the amounts of methionine, threonine, and putrescine were increased, while the amounts of myristic acid and pentadecanoic acid were decreased with age, respectively. The present study demonstrated that microbiota colonization and the metabolome becomes more developed in the small intestine with age. This may shed new light on the microbiota-metabolome-immune interaction during development.