Challenge with E. acervulina increased (P 0.01) the
osmolarity of the duodenal and jejunal epithelia (Table 3).
Dietary betaine at 0.5 g/kg significantly decreased the osmolarity
of the duodenal epithelium compared with the 0.0 g/kg
treatment. The decrease in osmolarity due to betaine tended
to be more pronounced in chicks challenged with E. acervulina
(P 0.07 for betaine by E. acervulina interaction).