The several elements of intestinal innate immune system at the beginning of the life of broiler chicks

ABSTRACTFunctional capacity of digestive system and intestinal adaptive immunity are immature at hatching of broiler chicks. Therefore, intestinal innate immunity after hatching is vital to young chicks. The purpose of this study was to investigate expression and tissue distributions of several elements of the innate immune system (i.e., TLR2, TLR4, CD83, and MHC class II expressing cells) in the intestine of one‐day‐old chicks. For this purpose, ileum and cecum were examined the under different conditions, which included the control and 1, 3, 6, 12, or 24 h after injection of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and phosphate buffered saline. The findings indicated that regardless of the antigenic stimulation, Toll‐like receptor (TLR) 2 and TLR4 expressing cells were present in the intestinal tissues of one‐day‐old chicks. We noticed that the intestinal segments have different TLR expression levels after LPS stimulation. Dendritic cells were identified, and they left the intestinal tissue after LPS treatment. MHC class II molecules were diffusely present in both the ileum and cecum. This study demonstrates that the intestinal tissue of one‐day‐old chicks has remarkable defensive material, including histological properties and several elements of the innate immune system. Microsc. Res. Tech. 79:604–614, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.