Investigation of early supplementation of nucleotides on the intestinal maturation of weaned piglets

Nucleotides are essential for the development of the gastrointestinal tract and immune function, but their intake with milk by piglets could be insufficient. The effect of nucleotides on growth and health was tested on 98 piglets divided into two groups: NU, orally administrated with 4 mL of a nucleotide-based product (SwineMOD® ) at 10, 15, 18, 21, 27 days, or not (CO). Blood and feces were sampled at weaning (26 d, T1), and at 38 d (T2). Per each group and time-point, eight piglets were slaughtered and jejunal Peyer’s patches (JPPs) were collected. NU increased hemoglobin content and hematocrit, but not growth. At weaning, the NU fecal microbiota was characterized by the abundance of Campylobacteraceae, more typical of the growing phase, compared to CO, with a greater abundance of Streptococcaceae. For the blood transcriptome, an initial greater inflammatory activation was seen in CO, while at T2, NU enriched gene sets related to erythropoiesis. The activation of gene groups ranging from epigenetic response to transcriptional regulation evidenced an intense proliferative activity in NU JPPs. NU supplementation did not influence the growth performance of piglets but could have expressed a positive effect on pig microbiota anticipating its maturation at weaning. This immunostimulant activity in the JPPs could moderate the inflammation in the immediate pre-weaning

Potential dietary feed additives with antibacterial effects and their impact on performance of weaned piglets : a meta-analysis

This meta-analysis evaluated the use of potential dietary feed additives (pDFA) with antibacterial effects and their impact on the perfomance of weaned piglets. Twenty-three peer-reviewed in vivo studies, comprising 50 trials, were identified between January 2010 and January 2017. The pDFA in these studies could be grouped in 5 classes: antimicrobial peptides, chitosan, lysozyme, medium chain fatty acids/triglycerides and plant extracts. Mixed-effect meta-analyses with type of pDFA as fixed effect were performed for the growth parameters 'average daily gain' (ADG) and 'feed conversion ratio' (FCR), which are the two most important and used economic performance parameters for farmers. For each class of pDFA, results of the meta-analysis showed significantly higher average daily gain in the group with pDFA compared to the negative control group, while no significant difference with the positive control group was observed. Furthermore, a positive effect on FCR was found, i.e. significantly less feed was needed to gain 1 kg of body weight in the group with pDFA compared to the negative control group. No significant differences with positive control groups were observed for each class of pDFA, except for plant extracts, where the FCR was also significantly reduced in the treatment group. These results suggest that pDFA could reduce the use of antimicrobials without significant negative effects on performance indicators

Potential dietary feed additives with antibacterial effects and their impact on performance of weaned piglets: A meta-analysis

This meta-analysis evaluated the use of potential dietary feed additives (pDFA) with antibacterial effects and their impact on the perfomance of weaned piglets. Twenty-three peer-reviewed in vivo studies, comprising 50 trials, were identified between January 2010 and January 2017. The pDFA in these studies could be grouped in 5 classes: antimicrobial peptides, chitosan, lysozyme, medium chain fatty acids/ triglycerides and plant extracts. Mixed-effect meta-analyses with type of pDFA as fixed effect were performed for the growth parameters ‘average daily gain’ (ADG) and ‘feed conversion ratio’ (FCR), which are the two most important and used economic performance parameters for farmers. For each class of pDFA, results of the meta-analysis showed significantly higher average daily gain in the group with pDFA compared to the negative control group, while no significant difference with the positive control group was observed. Furthermore, a positive effect on FCR was found, i.e. significantly less feed was needed to gain 1 kg of body weight in the group with pDFA compared to the negative control group. No significant differences with positive control groups were observed for each class of pDFA, except for plant extracts, where the FCR was also significantly reduced in the treatment group. These results suggest that pDFA could reduce the use of antimicrobials without significant negative effects on performance indicators

Dietary Nitrate: Effects on the health of weaning pigs and Antimicrobial activity on seven probiotic Bifidobacterium spp. strains

The potential role of nitrite as an antimicrobial substance in the stomach may be of some importance in the ecology of the gastrointestinal tract and in host physiology. It has been shown that nitrite, under the acidic conditions of the stomach, may kill gut pathogens like Salmonella enteritidis, Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhimurium, and Yersinia enterocolitica, whereas acid alone has only a bacteriostatic effect. An in vivo study was conducted in order to assess the effects of dietary nitrate on microbiota and on the health of the gut (particularly in the stomach and small intestine). 96 weaning pigs were fed a diet containing high nitrate levels (15 mg and 150 mg) and then challenged with Salmonella enterica serovar typhimurium. Differences in composition of the gut microbiota were assessed by analysing samples from the pigs: To date analysis of 48 pigs has been completed.. Preliminary results demonstrated no effect on the population densities of microbial groups either from the challenge or from nitrate intake. However, increasing the time from challenge decreased either the counts of LAB in the stomach and jejunum or of clostridia in the stomach. Bifidobacteria also decreased in the stomach contents as nitrate supplementation increased. Supplementing the feedstuff with high dietary nitrate intake and then challenging with Salmonella did not affect the gastric pH or the degree of ulceration in the pigs. The synergistic bactericidal effects of pH, nitrite and thiocyanate on seven probiotic Bifidobacterium spp. strains were also investigated in an in vitro study. The results of the in vitro study demonstrated that an inhibitory effect exists on the seven probiotic bifidobacteria investigated with an exposure longer than 2 hours and pH values < 5.0. Addition of thiocyanate also increased the susceptibility of the tested strains. In this in vitro study, the most resistant strains at all conditions were B. animalis subsp. lactis Ra 18 and P32 and B. choerinum Su 877, Su 837 and Su 891

The effect of a single, early-life administration of a probiotic on piglet growth performance and faecal microbiota until weaning

The establishment and maintenance of a balanced gut microbiota in early life play a pivotal role in pigs. This study aims to evaluate the effect of the administration of a single early-life probiotic on piglet faecal microbiota and growth performance until weaning. Forty-eight hours after birth (d0), 820 piglets were allocated into 4 groups (205 piglets/16 litters/group) and orally inoculated as follows: 1) Control (CO: 4 mL of pure water); 2) Saccharomyces (SA: 4 mL containing a total of 1 × 1010 CFU of Saccharomyces cerevisiae var. boulardii CNCM-1079; 3) Enterococcus (EF: 4 mL containing a total of 1 × 1010 CFU of Enterococcus faecium lactiferm WS200); 4) a mix of the two probiotics at the same doses (SAEF). At d7 and d18, the piglets were weighed, and faeces from the piglets (18 piglets/group from 6 sows/group) and their mothers were analysed for a microbial profile by sequencing the v3-v4 regions of the 16S rRNA gene. Data were arranged in a 2x2 factorial design. The probiotic supplement improved piglet ADG in the periods d7-d18 (p &lt;.0001) and d0-d18 (p &lt;.05). From d7 to d18, the SA group tended to have lower mortality than the CO group (p =.08). The probiotic supplement significantly affected the microbial beta diversity at d7 (p &lt;.05). The SA probiotic favoured the colonisation of Erysipelatoclostridium and Christensenella, and the EF probiotic the colonisation of Lachnospiraceae. These results highlighted that the administration of a single early-life probiotic supplement could improve piglet performance and shape the faecal microbial profile.Highlights A single dose of E. faecium or S. cerevisiae improved piglet performance in the pre-weaning period. The early administration of probiotics shaped the faecal microbial profile of the piglets and contributed to improved growth performance

Correction to: Assessment of Biolog Ecoplate™ method for functional metabolic diversity of aerotolerant pig fecal microbiota

Correction to: Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology, (2021), 105, 14-15, (6033-6045), 10.1007/s00253-021-11449-