TY - JOUR AU - Kers, Jannigje G. AU - Velkers, Francisca C. AU - Fischer, Egil A. J. AU - Hermes, Gerben D. A. AU - Lamot, David M. AU - Stegeman, J. Arjan AU - Smidt, Hauke PY - 2019 DA - 2019/08/27 TI - Take care of the environment: housing conditions affect the interplay of nutritional interventions and intestinal microbiota in broiler chickens JO - Animal Microbiome SP - 10 VL - 1 IS - 1 AB - The intestinal microbiota is shaped by many interactions between microorganisms, host, diet, and the environment. Exposure to microorganisms present in the environment, and exchange of microorganisms between hosts sharing the same environment, can influence intestinal microbiota of individuals, but how this affects microbiota studies is poorly understood. We investigated the effects of experimental housing circumstances on intestinal microbiota composition in broiler chickens, and how these effects may influence the capacity to determine diet related effects in a nutrition experiment. A cross-sectional experiment was conducted simultaneously in a feed research facility with mesh panels between pens (Housing condition 1, H1), in an extensively cleaned stable with floor pens with solid wooden panels (H2), and in isolators (H3). In H1 and H2 different distances between pens were created to assess gut microbiota exchange between pens. Feed with and without a blend of medium-chain fatty acids (MCFA) was used to create differences in cecal microbiota between pens or isolators within the same housing condition. Male one-day-old Ross broiler chickens (n = 370) were randomly distributed across H1, H2, and H3. After 35 days cecal microbiota composition was assessed by 16S ribosomal RNA gene amplicon sequencing. Metabolic functioning of cecal content was assessed based on high-performance liquid chromatography. SN - 2524-4671 UR - https://doi.org/10.1186/s42523-019-0009-z DO - 10.1186/s42523-019-0009-z ID - Kers2019 ER -