The transition from breast milk to solid feed is a dramatic change in the nutrition of piglets, frequently necessitating antibiotic treatment. In efforts to reduce the use of antibiotics, dietetic concepts based on natural feed additives are becoming more and more important. In the present study, experiments were carried out with 15 rearing piglets (days 28–56) divided into three groups that were offered different diets (Ctr [0% peat]; H1.5 [1.5% peat]; and H3.0 [3.0% peat] based on a commercial weaner recipe; all ~178 g CP, 13.7 MJ ME, 13.3 g Lys, as-fed). The contents of cecal and colon digesta were removed at necropsy. The gas formation (4 h) in colon digesta was measured using in vitro batch fermenters. For microbiome studies, 16S rRNA amplification was performed within the hypervariable region V 4 and sequenced with Illumina MiSeq platform. DNA read mapping and statistical analysis were performed using QIIME (version 1.8.0), MicrobiomeAnalyst, RStudio, and SAS Enterprise Guide. The mean body weight of the animals at the end of the trial did not show statistical differences (in kg: Ctr: 26.1 ± 4.85, H1.5: 28.5 ± 3.41, H3.0: 26.2 ± 4.92). The daily weight gains were high for this age (in g/day; Ctr: 607 ± 157; H1.5: 692 ± 101; H3.0: 615 ± 113) and the feed to gain ratio low (in kg/kg; Ctr: 1.538; H1.5: 1.462; H3.0: 1.462). Concentrations of short-chain fatty acids in the cecal content were significantly lower when peat was used (mmol/kg wet weight; Ctr: 173 ± 30.0; H1.5:134 ± 15.0; H3.0:133 ± 17.3). Numerical differences were found in the gas formation (in mL gas per 10 mL batch in 4 h; Ctr: 7.9 ± 2.2; H1.5: 7.4 ± 2.4; H3.0: 6.6 ± 1.1). The microbiome analyses in the cecal content showed significantly higher values for alpha diversity Chao 1 index for samples from the control group. Significant differences were found for bacterial relative abundance for Tenericutes at phylum level and Mollicutes at class level ( p < 0.05) in cecal microbiota. Therefore, there was initial evidence that peat influences intestinal microflora causing a shift in the overall concentration of fermentation products in both, the cecal and the colon content.

A recent study showed that polymerized siloxane (PDMS) coating of biomaterials like polycarbonate, stainless steel or glass results in a hydrophobic and positively charged surface, which is known to be advantageous for cell adhesion. However, when Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus epidermidis were cultured on PDMS coated materials for one hour, this resulted in a significant decrease of bacterial adherence compared to non-coated materials. The study therefore aimed at investigating antimicrobial effects of PDMS. We used nosocomial aerobic grown bacteria S. epidermidis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, E. coli and the biofilm formation model organism Bacillus subtilis, which were exposed to PDMS in a planktonic culture assay and additionally while biofilm formation. PDMS had a significant impact on the growth of these bacteria in both culture assays. In planktonic culture, PDMS exposition resulted in a decreased growth of all bacteria tested, which was strongly species specific. Biofilm culture in contrast caused an increased growth of E. coli and P. aeruginosa, while growth of S. epidermidis and B. subtilis was decreased. However, these results are based on tests of single species biofilms. Previous to practical application it is necessary to confirm these results by tests in which different bacterial species are able to interact like in natural biofilms resulting in modified bacterial growth behavior and toxin resistance.

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The purpose of this study was to gain knowledge about the micromorphology of the porcine common carotid artery (CCA) during the period of growth over the bodyweight range of 10–40 kg. CCA samples from German landrace pigs (DL) aged either 2 or 3 months (DL‐2 and DL‐3) were compared with samples from Göttingen minipigs (GM) aged either 18 or 40 months (GM‐18 and GM‐40) using transmitted light (phase‐contrast mode) and transmission electron microscopy. The GM‐18, GM‐40 and the DL‐3 groups had typical muscular artery histological characteristics. Contrasting to this, the 2‐month‐old DL pigs had a transitional artery type being characterized by a significantly higher proportion of elastic fibres and a significantly lower number of smooth muscle cells than did the 1 month older DL‐3. During the period of maturation, the tunica media of the CCA in GM animals thickened by 1.3× and in DL animals by 2.5× resulting in an overall increased vessel wall thickness. The cumulated thickness of the tunica interna (endothelium, stratum subendotheliale and internal elastic lamina) and the tunica media (including the external elastic lamina) of DL‐3 and GM‐40 pigs were similar to each other and comparable to that of humans. With an increasing vessel wall thickness, the luminal diameter decreased in GM by 19% and in DL by 11%. Additionally, in the older age groups, GM‐40 and DL‐3, the internal elastic lamina principally was continuous, but there were also interrupted large segments of elastic lamina separated by gaps. In addition, the principal internal elastic lamina was duplicated in several places.