This study was conducted to determine the effect of reducing calcium (Ca) and available phosphorus (AvP) on performance, carcass yield, tibia traits and jejunum histomorphology in broilers. For this purpose, 480 one-day-old Ross 308 male chicks were distributed into four trial groups with eight subgroups. During the starter period, birds were fed with recommended or reduced Ca and AvP contents of 66.7 and 62.5 g/kg, respectively. Calcium and AvP contents of the groups were as follows: control: 8.70 g/kg Ca, 4.40 g/kg AvP for grower and 7.80 g/kg Ca, 3.90 g/kg AvP for finisher; LCP1: 8.30 g/kg Ca, 4.20 g/kg AvP for grower and 7.10 g/kg Ca, 3.50 g/kg AvP for finisher; LCP2: 7.90 g/kg Ca, 4.00 g/kg AvP for grower and 6.00 g/kg Ca, 3.00 g/kg AvP for finisher; LCP3: 7.00 g/kg Ca, 3.80 g/kg for grower and 5.00 g/kg Ca, 3.00 g/kg AvP for finisher. Performance variables have been calculated from the data of each period, and samples were obtained from the slaughtered birds on the final day of the trial (42nd day) for carcass and tibia traits and jejunum histomorphology. Reducing dietary Ca and AvP did not affect the broiler performance, carcass yield and mortality. Tibia ash decreased in LCP2 and LCP3 groups (P < 0.01). Villus width and villus surface area increased in LCP2 and LCP3. Overall, feeding with a diet 100 g/kg lower than the recommended Ca and AvP did not affect performance in broilers, but improved jejunal development.

Laminins are a multigene family of extracellular matrix molecules. Quantitatively, they are one of the most abundant glycoproteins present in basement membranes. Functionally, they can modulate several key biological activities, including cell adhesion and migration, gene expression and cell survival. Variability in the spatial and temporal expression of laminins, as well as of their specific receptors of the integrin family, in various tissues and organs, suggests that different laminins perform distinct functions. This article focuses on the human intestinal epithelium as a paradigm to illustrate the potential relationship between laminin–cell interactions and the cell state. This rapidly renewing epithelium consists of spatially separated proliferative and differentiated cell populations located in the crypts and on the villi, respectively. Differential distributions of the various laminins and laminin-binding integrins have been observed along the crypt–villus axis in both the developing and the adult intestine, and important alterations in the pattern of laminin expression have been reported in various intestinal pathologies, such as tufting enteropathy, Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, and colorectal cancer. More-direct approaches, including experimentation with in vitro and in vivo models, have provided evidence in support of a role for laminins in intestinal cell functions. Although further work is still needed, laminins emerge more and more as key regulators of specific cell functions important in both intestinal health and intestinal disease.