Arginine improves nutritional quality of sow milk and piglet performance

Abstract

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of L-arginine supplementation in lactation diets on the productive and reproductive performance of pluriparous sows and their litters. Seventy-six sows of the same genetic line were assigned to four treatments in a completely randomized design with 19 replicates. The experimental unit was the sow and its respective litter. Treatments comprised a control diet (no L-arginine supplementation) and other three diets obtained by top dressing the control diet with 0.5, 1.0, and 1.5% of L-arginine. L-arginine supplementation had no effect on any performance variables, body condition, milk production, or weaning-estrus interval. There was a quadratic effect on percentage of protein and fat in milk as well as on the daily production of these components. Protein and fat percentage declined during lactation. Adding L-arginine to the diet had a quadratic effect on piglet weight at 13 and 21 days, the optimal level of L-arginine supplementation being estimated as 0.64% and 0.71%, respectively. L-arginine supplementation had a quadratic effect on the weight gain of piglets during the first 13 days and on total period of lactation, the optimal level of L-arginine supplementation being estimated as 0.60% and 0.70%, respectively. Supplementing lactation diets with 0.70% of L-arginine, corresponding to 45 g day −1 , improves the weight gain of piglets by improving the nutritional quality of sow milk.

Identification of the association between <i>FABP4</i> gene polymorphisms and milk production traits in Sfakia sheep

“…Previous studies revealed the importance of arginine in increasing milk protein content. For example, Moreira et al (2018) described how dietary supplementation with high levels of arginine increased milk production and milk protein in pigs. Clark et al (1975) found that arginine uptake by the mammary gland associated with milk yield in rabbits and cows; however, O'Quinn et al (2002) revealed that the rate of arginine catabolism in the lactating sows was greater than that for the pregnant or non-lactating sows.…”

The economic viability of L-arginine supplementation in diets for sows in the lactation phase

“…According to the Köppen classification, the climate is characterized as humid subtropical (Cwa). Sows were selected based on their reproductive history, with between 12 and 13 piglets born on the previous farrowing and insemination using the same boars (Moreira et al, 2018).The local bioethics committee approved the Rev. Bras.…”

“…Anim., Salvador, v.21, 01 -10, e210412020, 2020 ISSN 1519 9940 http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1519-9940210412020 Agribusiness Received on: 22/08/2019 Accepted on: 14/01/2020 4 study of Moreira et al (2018), named as case number 43/13. Data was used according to a previous study by Moreira et al (2018), in which the treatments consisted of a control diet (without supplementation of L-arginine) and three diets obtained by supplementation with 0.5, 1.0, or 1.5% of L-arginine, with 98.5% purity; the best response for the performance variables of the litter with 21 days was estimated to be 0.71% supplementation. In this sense, the present work aimed to compare between the control treatment, the supplementation with 0.71% of Larginine (technical efficiency) and the supplementation with 0.43% of Larginine (economic efficiency).…”

“…In the estimation of technical efficiency, a production function was calculated. It was represented by Equation 1, where y represents the weight of the piglet on the 21st day of lactation for the dependent variable x, which refers to the total supplemented amount of L-arginine in the diet of the sows, decreased from the error margin, during the experiment by Moreira et al (2018). The production function was represented by the following equation Equation 1: y = 6,287.09 + 917.31x -642.20x² The work was conducted according to the Theory of Production applied to the economic analysis of experiments (Noronha, 1984).…”

“…In addition, arginine stimulates the secretion of prolactin and growth hormone, which are necessary for breast development (Reyes;Karl;Klahr, 1994). Supplementation with 0.71% L-arginine improves piglets' weaning weight, considering 21 days of lactation (Moreira et al, 2018). The economic viability resulting from nutritional adjustments with amino acids in the lactation phase is an essential parameter to be evaluated when aiming for greater accuracy in nutrition and a reduction of formulation costs, especially when using L-arginine.…”