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Threats and Opportunities When Using Chickens as a Model for Host-Microbiota Studies
1Veterinary Research Institute, Hudcova 70, 62100 Brno, Czech Republic.
Microorganisms
|June 26, 2026
Summary
Commercial hatchery chicks are not ideal controls due to their environmental microbiota. Understanding this difference is crucial for accurate host-microbiota research and offers unique opportunities for studying offspring microbiota development.
Area of Science:
- Microbiology
- Animal Science
- Developmental Biology
Background:
- Commercial hatchery chicks are widely used as controls in research.
- These chicks lack maternal contact, crucial for transferring adapted microbiota.
- Their microbiota originates from the environment, not hens.
Purpose of the Study:
- To challenge the assumption of hatchery chicks as suitable controls.
- To highlight the impact of environmental microbiota on chick development.
- To explore the potential of hatchery chicks in host-microbiota research.
Main Methods:
- The study is a conceptual analysis based on existing knowledge.
- It reviews the natural development of chick microbiota through maternal contact.
- It contrasts this with the microbial colonization of hatchery-raised chicks.
Main Results:
- Hatchery chicks possess environmentally-derived microbiota, not hen-adapted microbiota.
- This microbial difference can lead to confounding results in research.
- Established dogmas on age-dependent gut microbiota development may be inaccurate.
Conclusions:
- Hatchery chicks are not appropriate controls due to microbial differences.
- This microbial origin significantly impacts research outcomes.
- Hatchery chicks offer a unique model for studying host-microbiota interactions in offspring free of paternal influence.
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