Ferulic acid improves growth performance and lipid metabolism and bile acid level partially by activating the PPAR and CYP7A1 pathways in broilers

作者：Fei Long, Zhangbo Lou, Jun Qi, Weite Li, Yaxu Liang, Dongming Yu, Shuxin Zhuang, Yongquan Han, Q. Chen, Xiang Zhong · 发表于：Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture · 年份：2026 · DOI：10.1002/jsfa.70539 · 被引用次数：2 · 研究领域：Animal Nutrition and Physiology、Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptors、Rabbits: Nutrition, Reproduction, Health

Abstract BACKGROUND High‐energy and high‐protein diets promote excessive fat deposition in broilers, increasing their susceptibility to metabolic disorders. Ferulic acid (FA) is a phenolic acid with multiple biological functions and has potential application value. The present study evaluated the effects of dietary FA on the growth performance, lipid metabolism, bile acid synthesis and gut microbiota in broilers. In total, 640 male broilers were allocated to five groups at 1 day of age, and fed with a basal diet supplemented with 0 (control group), 50, 100, 150 or 200 mg kg −1 FA for 42 days. RESULTS FA administration linearly and quadratically increased the average daily gain. At 42 days, dietary FA linearly reduced hepatic levels of triglycerides, total cholesterol and low‐density lipoprotein cholesterol. It also up‐regulated the gene and protein expression of peroxisome proliferator‐activated receptor (PPAR)γ and adenosine monophosphate–activated protein kinase (AMPK) in the liver. Additionally, FA enhanced the expression of CYP7A1 protein, increasing the levels of bile acids in both the liver and serum. The results of the Kruskal–Wallis H test for 16S rRNA sequences indicated significant increases in Blautia and Eisenbergiella , as well as significant decreases in Enterococcus and Bacillus . Moreover, cecal metabolomics analysis revealed differences in metabolites between the 100 mg kg −1 FA and control groups, which were enriched in the signaling pathways related to lipi...