Dietary Arthrospira platensis modulates autophagy-related markers in breast muscle of heat-stressed broilers and chicken primary myoblasts
- 1Center of Excellence for Poultry Science, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, 72701, USA
Abstract
Previous study showed that Arthrospira platensis (Spirulina, SP) enhanced breast yield in heat-stressed broilers via modulation of proteostasis network. As autophagy is a fundamental component of this cellular process, the objective of this study was to determine the effect of SP supplementation on autophagy machinery in breast muscle of heat-stressed broilers. one-day old male Cobb 500 broilers (n=600) were randomly allocated to 12 environmental chambers (2 floor pens/chamber, 24 pens in total, 25 birds/pen) and fed two diets (standard control diet, C vs. SP-supplemented diet at 0.5% inclusion rate). On day 29 to 42, birds were exposed to 2 environmental conditions (thermoneutral, TN, 24°C vs. cyclic HS 36°C, 8h/day). A pair-fed group was included to distinguish between the effect of HS per se and the effect associated with feed depression-induced by HS. In vitro studies were conducted to test the effect of SP compounds, quercetin (QCT, 10μM) and benzoic acid (BA, 50μM) separately or combined, on autophagy machinery in heat-stressed (45°C for 6h) and/or starved (HBSS) chicken primary embryonic myoblasts (CPEM). Untreated CPEM cells maintained at 37°C were used as control. Expression of Genes and proteins involved in autophagy processes were determined by qPCR and Western blot, respectively (n =6 birds/group). Data were analyzed by two-way ANOVA and Tukey’s HSD test, and significance was set at P < 0.05. Compared to control diet, in-feed SP supplementation modulated autophagy nucleation and initiation via reducing p-ULK1Ser555 (P = 0.0002) in TN, HS, and PF conditions, and ATG13 (P = 0.0385) protein levels in HS-broiler breasts. Supplementation of SP significantly decreased Rab7 protein expression in breast of HS broilers, indicating an inhibition of autophagosome maturation and fusion. Treatment with QCT and BA combined, recapitulated some of SP effects, by significantly modulating ATG13, ATG5, ATG7, LC3, and P62 protein levels in heat-stressed and starved CPEM cells. Collectively, this is the first report showing that SP and its compound (QCT, BA) modulated the autophagy processes in heat-stressed broiler breasts and CPEM, which might explain its beneficial effect on breast yield enhancement.
Related
- Spirulina (Arthrospira platensis) Influences Nutritional Characteristics and the Relative GC–MS Chemical Profile of Aquaponically Cultivated Celery (Apium graveolens)
- Effect of microalgal biostimulants (Chlorella vulgaris and Arthrospira platensis) on the growth performance of Pak Choy in a hydroponic system.
- A family of metabolite damage-control phosphatases modulates ROS-induced autophagy and plant stress resilience
- The BTB/POZ‐MATH Protein ZmBPM1 Interacts With Autophagy‐related Protein ZmATG6 and Modulates the NLR Protein Rp1‐D21‐Mediated Defense Response in Maize
- Empagliflozin Modulates Apoptosis and Autophagy Pathways in Lung Cancer Through Network Pharmacology and In Vitro Analysis.
BibTeX
@article{liu2026dietary,
title = {{Dietary Arthrospira platensis modulates autophagy-related markers in breast muscle of heat-stressed broilers and chicken primary myoblasts}},
author = {Lulu Liu and Elizabeth S. Greene and Sami Dridi},
journal = {Poultry science},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1016/j.psj.2026.107973},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/PMC/PMC13718812},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Dietary Arthrospira platensis modulates autophagy-related markers in breast muscle of heat-stressed broilers and chicken primary myoblasts
AU - Lulu Liu
AU - Elizabeth S. Greene
AU - Sami Dridi
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/17
JO - Poultry science
DO - 10.1016/j.psj.2026.107973
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/PMC/PMC13718812
AB - Previous study showed that Arthrospira platensis (Spirulina, SP) enhanced breast yield in heat-stressed broilers via modulation of proteostasis network. As autophagy is a fundamental component of this cellular process, the objective of this study was to determine the effect of SP supplementation on autophagy machinery in breast muscle of heat-stressed broilers. one-day old male Cobb 500 broilers (n=600) were randomly allocated to 12 environmental chambers (2 floor pens/chamber, 24 pens in total, 25 birds/pen) and fed two diets (standard control diet, C vs. SP-supplemented diet at 0.5% inclusion rate). On day 29 to 42, birds were exposed to 2 environmental conditions (thermoneutral, TN, 24°C vs. cyclic HS 36°C, 8h/day). A pair-fed group was included to distinguish between the effect of HS per se and the effect associated with feed depression-induced by HS. In vitro studies were conducted to test the effect of SP compounds, quercetin (QCT, 10μM) and benzoic acid (BA, 50μM) separately or combined, on autophagy machinery in heat-stressed (45°C for 6h) and/or starved (HBSS) chicken primary embryonic myoblasts (CPEM). Untreated CPEM cells maintained at 37°C were used as control. Expression of Genes and proteins involved in autophagy processes were determined by qPCR and Western blot, respectively (n =6 birds/group). Data were analyzed by two-way ANOVA and Tukey’s HSD test, and significance was set at P < 0.05. Compared to control diet, in-feed SP supplementation modulated autophagy nucleation and initiation via reducing p-ULK1Ser555 (P = 0.0002) in TN, HS, and PF conditions, and ATG13 (P = 0.0385) protein levels in HS-broiler breasts. Supplementation of SP significantly decreased Rab7 protein expression in breast of HS broilers, indicating an inhibition of autophagosome maturation and fusion. Treatment with QCT and BA combined, recapitulated some of SP effects, by significantly modulating ATG13, ATG5, ATG7, LC3, and P62 protein levels in heat-stressed and starved CPEM cells. Collectively, this is the first report showing that SP and its compound (QCT, BA) modulated the autophagy processes in heat-stressed broiler breasts and CPEM, which might explain its beneficial effect on breast yield enhancement.
SN - 0032-5791
SN - 1525-3171
ER -