Small intestine structural and functional responses to environmental heavy metal stress in tree sparrow Passer montanus nestlings.

Publisher: Springer Country of Publication: Germany NLM ID: 9441769 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1614-7499 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 09441344 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Environ Sci Pollut Res Int Subsets: MEDLINE

Publication: <2013->: Berlin : Springer
Original Publication: Landsberg, Germany : Ecomed

Intestine, Small*/drug effects ; Intestine, Small*/metabolism ; Sparrows* ; Metals, Heavy*/toxicity; Animals ; Environmental Pollutants/toxicity

Tree sparrow nestlings predominantly consume protein-rich insect larvae, making them vulnerable to environmental heavy metal contamination through the food web, potentially affecting their growth. Understanding the effects of heavy metals on the structure and function of the small intestine, the principal organ responsible for protein digestion and absorption, is therefore crucial. This study investigated tree sparrow nestlings at three developmental stages (3, 6, and 12 days old) in Liujiaxia (LJX), a comparatively unpolluted area, and Baiyin (BY), a heavy metal polluted area, to elucidate the factors and mechanisms by which heavy metals affect nutrient absorption. We compared heavy metal accumulation levels, structural integrity, and protein digestion and absorption functions of the duodenum, jejunum, and ileum. The increase of fluctuating asymmetry and decrease in body condition in tree sparrow nestlings were found to be associated with environmental heavy metal accumulation in the small intestine. Structural impairments of villi and crypts were observed in the duodenum and jejunum of tree sparrow nestlings at 3-, 6-, and 12-day-old in the polluted site BY. Conversely, structures related to the ileum were elevated, and the small intestine of nestlings at all stages exhibited abnormally elevated protein digestibility but diminished absorption of amino acids. However, there was no significant difference in small peptide absorption. These findings indicate that environmental heavy metal pollution impacts the structure of the small intestine in tree sparrow nestlings through the food chain and further affects their digestion and absorption function of proteins.
Competing Interests: Declarations. Ethical approval: All animal studies and experiments were carried out according to the “Guidance of the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals” approved by the Ethics Committee of Experimental Animals of Lanzhou University, China. Consent to participate: The authors are free to contact any of the people involved in the research to seek further clarification and information. Consent for publication: This manuscript has not been published or presented elsewhere in part or in entirety and is not under consideration by another journal. Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.
(© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

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32370508 National Natural Science Foundation of China; 23JRRA1125 Foundation for Excellent Doctoral Student of Gansu Province

Keywords: Body condition; Environmental heavy metals; Protein digestion and absorption; Small intestine; Tree sparrow nestlings

0 (Metals, Heavy)
0 (Environmental Pollutants)

Date Created: 20241123 Date Completed: 20241210 Latest Revision: 20241210

20241210

10.1007/s11356-024-35587-7

39579182