Dietary Sanguinarine Enhances Antioxidant Capacity and Intestinal Barrier Function in Yellow-Feathered Broilers via Modulation of Microbiota-Associated Butyrate Signaling.
- 1Jiangxi Province Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition and Feed, College of Animal Science and Technology, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Nanchang 330045, China.
- 2Key Laboratory of Animal Feed and Nutrition of Zhejiang Province, Institute of Animal Nutrition and Feed Sciences, College of Animal Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China.
Abstract
Sanguinarine (SA), a bioactive benzophenanthridine alkaloid, has emerged as a potential alternative to antibiotic growth promoters; however, its effects on intestinal redox homeostasis and epithelial regeneration remain incompletely understood. This study investigated whether dietary SA could improve growth performance and intestinal health in yellow-feathered broilers and explored the potential involvement of gut microbiota-associated metabolite signaling pathways. Broilers were fed diets supplemented with different concentrations of SA (0.5 or 0.7 mg/kg feed), with an antibiotic-supplemented group serving as a comparator. High-dose SA (0.7 mg/kg feed) improved body weight and average daily gain while reducing the feed-to-gain ratio. SA also alleviated intestinal barrier dysfunction, as evidenced by reduced circulating diamine oxidase, D-lactate, and lipopolysaccharide levels, together with increased jejunal expression of tight-junction proteins and MUC2. In parallel, SA enhanced systemic and intestinal antioxidant capacity, as indicated by increased total antioxidant capacity and superoxide dismutase activity and decreased malondialdehyde accumulation. These changes were accompanied by increased immunoglobulin levels, reduced expression of pro-inflammatory mediators, and enhanced expression of anti-inflammatory cytokines. Cecal microbiota analysis demonstrated that SA markedly reshaped the microbial community, with enrichment of Faecalibacterium and depletion of several potentially unfavorable taxa. These microbial alterations, which were associated with improved antioxidant and immune indices, were accompanied by a selective increase in cecal butyrate levels. Consistently, SA enhanced intestinal GPR109A expression and upregulated genes associated with Wnt/β-catenin signaling. In LPS-challenged intestinal organoids, SA restored organoid growth and budding capacity, reduced apoptosis, increased Ki67-positive cell proliferation, and restored the expression of genes associated with Wnt/β-catenin signaling. Collectively, these findings indicate that dietary SA improves growth performance and intestinal homeostasis in broilers by attenuating oxidative stress and inflammation, strengthening epithelial barrier function, and supporting epithelial regeneration. The microbiota-associated butyrate/GPR109A/Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway may contribute to these protective intestinal effects.
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BibTeX
@article{li2026dietary,
title = {{Dietary Sanguinarine Enhances Antioxidant Capacity and Intestinal Barrier Function in Yellow-Feathered Broilers via Modulation of Microbiota-Associated Butyrate Signaling.}},
author = {Xin Li and Chuanbin Chen and Lihua Li and Minfeng Ding and Wenyan Zhang and Weifen Li and Lanjiao Xu and Qi Wang},
journal = {Antioxidants (Basel, Switzerland)},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3390/antiox15101317},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42939891},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Dietary Sanguinarine Enhances Antioxidant Capacity and Intestinal Barrier Function in Yellow-Feathered Broilers via Modulation of Microbiota-Associated Butyrate Signaling.
AU - Xin Li
AU - Chuanbin Chen
AU - Lihua Li
AU - Minfeng Ding
AU - Wenyan Zhang
AU - Weifen Li
AU - Lanjiao Xu
AU - Qi Wang
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/13
JO - Antioxidants (Basel, Switzerland)
DO - 10.3390/antiox15101317
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42939891
AB - Sanguinarine (SA), a bioactive benzophenanthridine alkaloid, has emerged as a potential alternative to antibiotic growth promoters; however, its effects on intestinal redox homeostasis and epithelial regeneration remain incompletely understood. This study investigated whether dietary SA could improve growth performance and intestinal health in yellow-feathered broilers and explored the potential involvement of gut microbiota-associated metabolite signaling pathways. Broilers were fed diets supplemented with different concentrations of SA (0.5 or 0.7 mg/kg feed), with an antibiotic-supplemented group serving as a comparator. High-dose SA (0.7 mg/kg feed) improved body weight and average daily gain while reducing the feed-to-gain ratio. SA also alleviated intestinal barrier dysfunction, as evidenced by reduced circulating diamine oxidase, D-lactate, and lipopolysaccharide levels, together with increased jejunal expression of tight-junction proteins and MUC2. In parallel, SA enhanced systemic and intestinal antioxidant capacity, as indicated by increased total antioxidant capacity and superoxide dismutase activity and decreased malondialdehyde accumulation. These changes were accompanied by increased immunoglobulin levels, reduced expression of pro-inflammatory mediators, and enhanced expression of anti-inflammatory cytokines. Cecal microbiota analysis demonstrated that SA markedly reshaped the microbial community, with enrichment of Faecalibacterium and depletion of several potentially unfavorable taxa. These microbial alterations, which were associated with improved antioxidant and immune indices, were accompanied by a selective increase in cecal butyrate levels. Consistently, SA enhanced intestinal GPR109A expression and upregulated genes associated with Wnt/β-catenin signaling. In LPS-challenged intestinal organoids, SA restored organoid growth and budding capacity, reduced apoptosis, increased Ki67-positive cell proliferation, and restored the expression of genes associated with Wnt/β-catenin signaling. Collectively, these findings indicate that dietary SA improves growth performance and intestinal homeostasis in broilers by attenuating oxidative stress and inflammation, strengthening epithelial barrier function, and supporting epithelial regeneration. The microbiota-associated butyrate/GPR109A/Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway may contribute to these protective intestinal effects.
SN - 2076-3921
ER -