Recent scientific research confirms that a specific glucose biopolymer may contribute to a healthy status of the gut during exposure to mycotoxins. It enhances the epithelial integrity by protecting tight junction proteins from being damaged or displaced by ingestion of DON or OTA. Dietary supplementation of this glucose biopolymer proved to affect cytokine expression in porcine liver and stimulate the innate immune response in the porcine gastrointestinal system (Ryan et al 2012). Besides that, it alleviated the intestinal mucosal barrier impairment of broiler chickens challenged with Salmonella typhimurium (Shao et al 2013). Other findings show that glucose biopolymers stimulate the toll like receptor 2 (TLR2) and reduce the breakdown of the ZO-1 proteins in the tight junction complex, maintaining the natural intestinal barrier. Subsequently the ZO-1
protein complex moves closer to the cell wall reducing the tight junction permeability. This means stronger tight junctions and a better barrier against bacteria and viruses