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Adherence is the first and one of the most important steps of bacterial pathogenesis. Natural derived components that inhibit the adherence of pathogens to the surface of epithelial cells have received considered interest. The goal of this research was to assess the anti-adherence activity of mannan oligosaccharides (MOS), pectic oligosaccharides (POS) and cranberry high molecular weight component (HMW) against Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli. First the anti-adherence activity of MOS and their purified fraction (pMOS) was tested against three strains of C. jejuni and two strains of C. coli. Results shown significant reductions in adherence (up to 70%) of all C. jejuni strains and for C. coli ATCC 43485 in presence of MOS or pMOS (50 mg/mL). The mannan oligosaccharide fraction appear to be the responsible for the anti- adherence activity of MOS. Adherence inhibition (up to 70%) was also observed in presence of HMW at the highest concentration of 5 mg/mL of all the strains except for C. coli ATCC BAA-1061. Additionally, a blend of MOS-HMW did not shown additive effect to inhibit the adherence of all five Campylobacter strains. POS was not effective to inhibit the adherence of any of the strains tested in this study. Invasion inhibition was not observed in the presence of any of the components tested. These results show that naturally derived molecules as MOS and HMW can be used for animal production to reduce pathogens colonization and prevent the onset of human infection. Advisor. Robert W. Hutkins

The objectives of these experiments were to evaluate the main effects and interactive effects between dietary supplementation of a mannan oligosaccharide based product, Actigen® (ACT), and different levels of threonine in monogastrics, as evidenced by growth parameters, immune function, and intestinal health characteristics. In nursery piglets, ACT supplementation decreased average daily feed intake (P=0.04), but had no effect on body weight or feed conversion ratio. There were no noted differences between threonine levels on performance traits. There were no consistent differences in complete blood count or cytokine gene expression profiles in the blood. The highest level of threonine, 77% true ileal digestible threonine:lysine (Thr:Lys), increased villus height (P=0.007) and villus height:crypt depth (P=0.01). The lowest level, 57% Thr:Lys, decreased villus surface area (P=0.04) and goblet cell density (P=0.04). Supplementation with ACT increased total goblet cell area (P=0.02) and density (P=0.05). There were no interactions observed between ACT and Thr:Lys levels. In broiler chicks, feeding a diet containing 0.56% threonine decreased body weight (PPPP=0.07). On d 7, birds supplemented with ACT had heavier spleens as a percentage of body weight (P=0.01) compared to no ACT. When adjusted for body weight, the 0.56% threonine fed birds had smaller spleens (P=0.05) on d 7 when compared to the other threonine levels. Humerus (PPP=0.04) and birds fed 0.56% threonine had a higher concentration of potassium (PP=0.03) and few goblet cells (P=0.04) on d 7 when compared to the other threonine levels. In d 21 jejunum, supplementation with ACT reduced apical width (P=0.03) and surface area (P=0.02). An interaction was observed between ACT and threonine level in the jejunum on d 21 on basal width (P=0.03) and surface area (P=0.02), indicating that in diets lacking ACT, excess threonine increased villus size. Overall, ACT and threonine acted primarily independently to modulate the intestinal architecture of both nursery piglets and broiler chicks. However, in broiler chicks ACT and threonine interacted to alter villus size. These results indicate that ACT and threonine have direct effects on the intestines of monogastrics.