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. 2023 Jun 12;13(12):1961.
doi: 10.3390/ani13121961.

Peripheral and Central Impact of Methionine Source and Level on Growth Performance, Circulating Methionine Levels and Metabolism in Broiler Chickens

Craig W Maynard  1 , Elizabeth Gilbert  2 , Frances Yan  3 , Mark A Cline  4 , Sami Dridi  1
Affiliations

Peripheral and Central Impact of Methionine Source and Level on Growth Performance, Circulating Methionine Levels and Metabolism in Broiler Chickens

Craig W Maynard et al. Animals (Basel). .

Abstract

The present study was designed to evaluate the effects of DL-methionine (DL-Met) 2-hydroxy-4-(methylthio) butanoic acid (HMTBa), or S-(5'-Adenosyl)-L-methionine chloride (SAM), using feeding trial and central administration, on live performance, plasma metabolites, and the expression of feeding-related hypothalamic neuropeptides in broilers raised to a market age (35 d). Final average body weight (BW) and feed conversion ratio (FCR) from the feeding trial exceeded the performance measurements published by the primary breeder. At d35, the MTBHa group had better BW and lower feed intake, which resulted in a better FCR than the DL-Met group at 87 TSAA to lysine. At the molecular levels, the expression of hypothalamic neuropeptide (NPY) and monocarboxylate transporter (MCT) 2 did not differ between all treated groups; however, the mRNA abundances of hypothalamic MCT1 and orexin (ORX) were significantly upregulated in DL-Met- treated groups compared to the control. The ICV administration of SAM significantly reduced feed intake at all tested periods (from 30 to 180 min post injection) compared to the aCSF-treated group (control). The central administration of HMTBa increased feed intake, which reached a significant level only 60 min post administration, compared to the control group. ICV administration of DL-Met slightly increased feed intake compared to the control group, but the difference was not statistically discernable. Quantitative real-time PCR analysis showed that the hypothalamic expression of NPY, cocaine- and amphetamine-regulated transcript, MCT1, and MCT2 was significantly upregulated in the ICV-HMTBa group compared to the aCSF birds. The hypothalamic expression of the mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR), AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPKα1), D-amino acid oxidase, and hydroxyacid oxidase was significantly upregulated in DL-Met compared to the control group. The mRNA abundances of ORX were significantly increased in the hypothalamus of both DL-Met and HMTBa groups compared to the aCSF birds; however, mTOR gene expression was significantly downregulated in the SAM compared to the control group. Taken together, these data show, for the first time, that DL-Met and HMTBa have a common downstream (ORX) pathway, but also a differential central pathway, typically NPY-MCT for HMTBa and mTOR-AMPK for methionine.

Keywords: DL-methionine; HMTBa; ICV injection; diet supplementation; gene expression; hypothalamus.

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Conflict of interest statement

Author Frances Yan is employed by Novus Inc. Novus had no role in conducting the research, generating the data, interpreting the results or writing the manuscript. The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Effects of diets varying in digestible total sulfur amino acids from 0 to 35 d on hypothalamic expression of feeding-related neuropeptides. The control group was fed a basal standard diet with no source of methionine. The mRNA levels of NPY (a), MCT1 (b), MCT2 (c), and ORX (d) were determined by qPCR and 2−ΔΔCT [15]. Data are mean ± SEM (n = 6–8/group) and * indicates a significant difference compared to the control group at p < 0.05. MCT, monocarboxylate transporter; NPY, neuropeptide Y; ORX, orexin.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Effects of ICV administration of DL-Met and HMTBa on broiler growth performances and plasma metabolites. (a) cumulative FI, (b) BW, (c) cumulative WI; (d) plasma methionine, and (e) plasma HMTBa. Data are mean ± SEM (n = 10/group) and different letters indicate a significant difference at p < 0.05. Alimet, HMTBA (2-hydroxy-4-(methylthio)butanoic acid); DL-Met, DL-methionine; SAM, S-(5′-Adenosyl)-L-methionine chloride.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Effects of ICV administration of DL-Met and HMTBa on hypothalamic expression of feeding-related neuropeptides. The gene expression of NPY (a), CART (b), MCT1 (c), MCT2 (d), mTOR (e), AMPKα1 (f), DAO (g), HAO (h), and ORX (i) were determined by qPCR and 2−ΔΔCT [15]. Data are mean ± SEM (n = 6–8/group) and * indicates a significant difference compared to the control group at p < 0.05. AMPK, adenosine monophosphate (AMP)-activated protein kinase; CART, cocaine- and amphetamine-regulated transcript; DAO, D-amino acid oxidase; HAO, hydroxyacid oxidase; MCT, monocarboxylate transporter; NPY, neuropeptide Y; ORX, orexin.
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