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. 2020 Dec 17;11:596457. doi: 10.3389/fphys.2020.596457

Figure 1.

Figure 1

Early feeding increases crypt and villi cell counts throughout post-hatch intestinal development. (A) Experimental timeline. Chicks at hatch were divided into two groups: EF chicks were fed upon hatch and delayed feeding chicks were fed 24 h post-hatch. Intestinal segments from both groups were sampled at Hatch (prior to feeding in both groups), d1 (prior to feeding in DF chicks), d3, d7, and d10. Villus (B) and crypt (D) cells were stained with 4',6-diamidino-2-phenylindole (DAPI) from Hatch to d10 in DF and EF chicks. Scale bars are 50 μm. DAPI-stained villus (C) and crypt (E) cells were counted from Hatch to d10 in DF and EF chicks. Values are means + SEM, asterisks mark significant differences between DF and EF chicks for each age by t-test, p < 0.05. (F) Ratios between villi cell counts and crypt cell counts from Hatch to d10 in DF and EF chicks. Ratios did not differ between DF and EF chicks. Letters mark significant differences between ages in values from both groups by Tukey-Kramer test, p < 0.05. (G) Measurements of villi heights (solid-filled bars) and crypt depths (striped-bars) from Hatch to d10 in DF and EF chicks. Values are means + SEM, and asterisks mark significant differences between DF and EF chicks for each age by t-test.