Effects of dietary inactivated probiotics on growth performance and immune responses of weaned pigs

Abstract

This experiment was performed to verify whether dietary heat-killed Lactobacillus rhamnosus (LR) improves growth performance and modulates immune responses of weaned pigs. Ninety-six weaned pigs [(Landrace x Yorkshire) x Duroc; 6.95 ± 0.25 kg BW; 28 d old] were randomly allocated to four treatments: 1) a basal diet without heat-killed LR (CON), 2) T1 (CON with 0.1% heat-killed LR), 3) T2 (CON with 0.2% heat-killed LR), and 4) T3 (CON with 0.4% heat-killed LR). Each treatment had six pens with four pigs (6 replicates per treatment) in a randomized completely block design. The heat-killed LR used in this study contained 1 × 10 9 FU/g of Lactobacillus rhamnosus in a commercial product. Pigs were fed each treatment for four weeks using a two-phase feeding program to measure growth performance and frequency of diarrhea. During the last week of this study, all diets contained 0.2% chromic oxide as an indigestible marker. Fecal sampling was performed through rectal palpation for the consecutive three days after the four adaptation days to measure apparent total tract digestibility (ATTD) of dry matter, crude protein, and gross energy (GE). Blood sampling was also performed on days 1, 3, 7, and 14 after weaning to measure immune responses such as serum tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1), C-reactive protein (CRP), and cortisol. The heat-killed LR increased (p < 0.05) growth rate, feed efficiency, and ATTD of GE for overall experimental period compared with CON, but reduced (p < 0.05) post-weaning diarrhea. In addition, pigs fed diets contained heat-killed LR had lower concentrations of serum TNF-α (d 7; p < 0.05), TGF-β (d 7; p < 0.10), and cortisol (d 3 and 7; p < 0.05) than pigs fed CON. In conclusion, dietary heat-killed LR improved growth rate, modified immune responses of weaned pigs, and alleviated post-weaning diarrhea.

Effects of Bacillus-based probiotics on growth performance, nutrient digestibility, and intestinal health of weaned pigs

“…Probiotics are defined by the FAO/WHO group as “live microorganisms which, when administered in adequate amounts, confer a good health benefit on the host” [ 11 , 12 ]. It has been well studied that probiotics could be alternatives to antibiotics because of their ability to reduce diarrhea and improve the growth performance of weaned pigs [ 13 ]. General strains of probiotic spices are mostly isolated from consumers of probiotics, including humans, chickens, or pigs.…”

Evaluation of brown rice to replace corn in weanling pig diet

“…The serum samples were left to clot at room temperature for 2 h, maintained at 4°C overnight, and then stored at –80°C after centrifuging for 15 min at 3,000 × g at room temperature. At the beginning of the final week of the experimental period, 0.2% chromic oxide was mixed into each diet as an indigestible marker and the pigs received these modified diets for the duration of the final week of the experimental period [ 17 ]. In order to determine the apparent total tract digestibility (ATTD) of nutrients, fecal samples of a randomly selected pig within each pen for each treatment were collected using the anal massage method for three consecutive days after an initial 4-day adaptation period and stored at –80°C until used for analysis.…”

Los productos bióticos, definición y modo de acción

“…Pueden mejorar el desempeño en producción, incluyendo la tasa de crecimiento, conversión alimenticia y la digestibilidad total aparente de la materia seca en el tracto de lechones destetados. Además, mostraron una reducida tasa de diarrea en el post-destete (Kang et al, 2021;Kang et al, 2019). La alimentación con una combinación de metabolitos de L. plantarum en la dieta de lechones pudiera mejorar la ganancia diaria promedio y el consumo, al mismo tiempo que reduce la incidencia de diarreas en el post-destete.…”