Acute cold stress induces intestinal injury via CIRP-TLR4-IRE1 signaling pathway in pre-starter broilers: short communication

Abstract

Abstract Background Cold stress is a common environmental stress in broiler chicks. Cold-inducible RNA-binding protein (CIRP) is a conserved cold shock protein that can regulate inflammatory response through Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4). The mechanism that how CIRP involves in the regulation of cold stress in broilers remains unclear. Methods and Results In this study, 360 7-day-old healthy male SZ901 chicks were selected and randomly allocated to 4 groups, and then subjected to acute cold exposure at the ambient temperature of 12 ± 1℃ for 0 h, 4 h, 8 h, and 12 h, respectively. After cold exposure, abdominal temperature, gene expression of CIRP-TLR4-IRE1 signaling pathway in ileum mucosa, and small intestinal structure were measured. The results showed that cold exposure decreased abdominal temperature, upregulated the gene expression of endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS) markers IRE1, inflammatory factors IL-1β, IL-6, IL-10, TNF-α, and tight junction proteins ZO-1 and Occludin in ileum of chicks compared with the control group with no (0 h) cold exposure. Compared with the control group, a long time cold exposure upregulated the gene expression of CIRP, TLR4, GRP78, NF-κB in ileum mucosa, and decreased the villus height and V/C of small intestine. Conclusions The above results suggest that acute cold stress induces endoplasmic reticulum stress via upregulating the gene expression of CIRP-TLR4-IRE1 signaling pathway, and results in the structural damage of chick intestine.