Prospects for the use of polyamines in poultry farming - a mini review

Polyamines are critically important for farm animals and birds in conditions of application of modern intensive breeding technologies and high stress loads. The main representatives of polyamines include putrescine, spermidine and spermine. Performing important physiological functions in avian cells during embryogenesis and further development, they possess pleiotropic biochemical activity, including the regulation of gene expression, cell proliferation and modulation of cell signaling (I.L.M.H. Aye et al., 2022; E. Stolarska et al., 2023; Yu.S. Kolesnikov et al., 2024). Polyamines are necessary for the stabilization of DNA and mRNA during gene transcription and mRNA translation, for stimulation of proliferation and apoptosis during the formation of organs and tissues, and are also involved in the regulation of transport and metabolism of nutrients, vitamins, calcium and other metabolites (U. Bachrach 2005; H.L. Lightfoot et al., 2014; S. Nakanishi et al., 2021). Currently, spermidine is reasonably considered a compound capable of increasing life expectancy, due to its effective effect on cell autophagy and the preservation of telomere length. Polyamines in the body of birds are synthesized from amino acids - arginine and proline. It is known that ornithine is formed under the action of arginase and the limiting enzyme in the biosynthesis of polyamines is ornithine decarboxylase, which forms putrescine (A.E. Pegg et al., 1981). The spermidine and spermine are formed under the action of synthetases. Recently, by introducing 14C labeled amino acids, it was found that proline can participate in the biosynthesis of polyamines (K. Furukawa et al., 2021). The processes of synthesis and decomposition of polyamines are reversible. During the decomposition of spermine and spermidine, acetyl derivatives are formed (E. Stolarska et al., 2023). The sources of polyamines in the body of birds are also feed and intestinal microflora. The introduction of polyamines into the feeding diet of birds has shown effectiveness in terms of survival, growth and development of birds with increased feed conversion (K.T. Smith et al, 2000). The effectiveness of the use of polyamines is shown not only for meat breeds, but also for egg breeds. In geese, it was found that spermidine and putrescine regulate the proliferation of intestinal cells, while having a positive effect on the intestinal microflora and on the activity of digestive enzymes. Dietary putrescine increases egg production, and in chickens affects the quality of eggshell formation and quantitative characteristics of plumage (S.R. Chowdhury et al., 2001). This review highlights some issues of the biochemistry of polyamines in the poultry body. The data on the use of polyamines in the practice of correcting stress-induced pathologies, such as hypoxia, are considered. Polyamines can function as primary stress molecules in bacteria, plants, and animals, including birds (T.T. Berezov et al., 2013; M.G. Makletsova et al., 2022). The physiological effect of polyamines extends to all organ and tissue systems of birds, especially the central nervous system. Spermidine and spermine are modulators of neurotransmitter systems of the brain, which makes them promising drugs for correcting bird behavior, a violation of which is observed under stress, as well as factors for increasing life expectancy. It is obvious that studying the effect of stress on the metabolism of polyamines in poultry tissues will allow correcting stress-induced changes that have a negative impact on the course of poultry development and limits the use of intensive technologies.