Organic iron absorption and expression of related transporters in the small intestine of1 broilers

ABSTRACT An experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of organic and inorganic Fe sources on Fe absorption and expression of related transporters in the small intestine of broilers. Iron-deficient intact broilers (7-d-old) were fed an Fe-unsupplemented corn−soybean meal basal diet or the basal diet supplemented with 60 mg Fe/kg as Fe sulfate (FeSO4∙7H2O), Fe-Met with weak chelation strength (Fe-Met W), Fe-proteinate with moderate chelation strength (Fe-Prot M) or Fe-proteinate with extremely strong chelation strength (Fe-Prot ES) for 14 d. The plasma Fe contents were enhanced (P 0.20) were detected among different Fe sources. Regardless of Fe source, the mRNA levels of DMT1 and FPN1 were higher (P 0.10) the mRNA levels of amino acid transporters and protein levels of DMT1 and FPN1 in the small intestine of broilers. These results indicate that organic Fe sources with stronger chelation strength showed higher Fe absorption in broilers in vivo; the mRNA expression of Fe and amino acid transporters varied along with the extension of the small intestine; the absorption of Fe as organic Fe chelates was not mediated by the amino acid transporters in intact chicks in this study.