Immediate and transgenerational effects of thymol supplementation, inactivated Salmonella and chronic heat stress on representative immune variables of Japanese quail

VIDELA, E. A.; GIAYETTO, O.; FERNÁNDEZ, M. E.; CHACANA, P. A.; MARÍN, R. H.; NAZAR, F. N.

Scientific Reports

Nature

Año: 2020 vol. 10

Environmental challenges are integrated in the inmunoneuroendocrine interplay, impacting theimmune system of the challenged individuals, and potentially implying transgenerational effects ontheir offspring. This study addressed whether dietary supplementation with thymol can modulate theimmune response of adult Japanese quail when simultaneously exposed to an inoculum of inactivatedSalmonella Enteritidis and a chronic heat stress (CHS). We also evaluated whether the experiencedsituations by adults can affect the immune response of their undisturbed offspring. In the parentalgeneration, supplemented quail exposed to CHS had a higher inflammatory response and similarvalues of the heterophil/lymphocyte (H/L) ratio than those that were not supplemented. In theiroffspring, those chicks whose parents were exposed to CHS showed higher inflammatory responseand lower antibody production. Regarding the H/L ratio, chicks whose parents were supplementedshowed lower H/L ratio values. Dietary supplementation with thymol partially and positivelymodulated the inflammatory response and avoided H/L ratio alteration in the parental generationexposed to high environmental temperatures, suggesting these adults were better at dealing with the challenge. The lower H/L ratio values in the offspring suggests that chicks are more capable to deal with potential stressful situations associated with conventional breeding conditions.