Effects of High Dietary Copper Supplementation on the Copper Accumulation and Total Copper Content in Fattening Pigs

Abstract

The objective of this current study was to investigate the effects of high dietary copper supplementation on the tissue copper deposition, distribution, and total copper concentration in fattening pigs. A total of 24 (Landrace × Large white × Duroc) pigs with an average initial body weight (BW) of 30 ± 1.05 kg were selected for the current experiment. At the beginning of the experiment, the pigs were randomly divided into four treatment groups with three replicate pens per treatment and two pigs per replicate and arranged in accordance to a completely randomized design based on the BW. The four treatment administered were as follows: 10 mg/kg, 45 mg/kg, 135 mg/kg, and 225 mg/kg of copper. The result indicates that the copper content in the liver, kidney, and heart increased with the increase in dietary copper composition. There was no significant difference in the copper content of the different visceral tissues in the 10 mg/kg treatment group. However, when the copper levels increased to 45 mg/kg and 135 mg/kg, the copper content in the liver was significantly higher than that in the other visceral tissues (P < 0.05). At 225 mg/kg dietary copper, there was a significant increase in the copper content of the foreleg muscle. There was no significant difference in copper content of the rib bones, tibia bones, and femur bone marrow copper accumulation between the 10 mg/kg copper and the 45 mg/kg copper fed pigs. In addition, there was no significant difference in the brain, blood, cerebellum, and skin copper content within all the treatment groups. Therefore, dietary copper levels increased with the increase in total copper accumulation in pigs. Hence, higher dietary copper supplementation increased liver, kidney, heart, fur, bones, bone marrow copper accumulation and total copper levels in fattening pigs.

Different copper sources and levels affect growth performance, copper content, carcass characteristics, intestinal microorganism and metabolism of finishing pigs

“…Cu concentrations in the liver increased with increased Cu inclusion in the diet, and addition of Cu at 20 mg/kg demonstrated higher levels in the liver of organic Cu treatments than that in the inorganic Cu treatment. Our study results are consistent with previous studies that observed higher concentrations of Cu in the liver, kidney, brain, and heart, with lower concentrations found in the bones and muscles ( Adams et al., 2019 ; Pena et al., 1999 ). In addition, sustained high Cu intake may lead to an excess Cu accumulation in the liver, which may affect the transportation and storage capacity of Cu ( Sternlieb, 1980 ), hence leading to excess Cu leakage into the circulatory system ( Floriańczyk, 2003 ).…”

Prebiotic effects of alfalfa (Medicago sativa) fiber on cecal bacterial composition, short-chain fatty acids, and diarrhea incidence in weaning piglets

“…1,15 The type of dietary ber, soluble or insoluble, inuences its effects on gut microbial composition and function. 1,16,17 The intake of high dietary ber has been reported to inuence energy metabolism, nutrient utilization, and subsequently results in a reduction in the performance of monogastric animals, especially pigs. [18][19][20] Recent ndings indicated that dietary ber can prevent intestinal diseases such as constipation, diarrhea, bowel diseases, and improve intestinal health in both humans and animal subjects.…”

“…25 Weaning piglets are associated with a reduction in feed consumption and low nutrient metabolism due to the immature digestive systems, stress as a result of the separation from the sows and litter mates, and the sudden change from the easily digestible sow's milk to less digestible solid feed. 12,16,17,26 The treatment of high-ber diets to piglets results in an overall increase in the total empty-weight of the gut 27 and an increase in gut secretions. 28 Dietary ber increased the growth performance, nutrient digestibility, and immunity in piglets, 29,30 resulting in a decrease in diarrhea incidence.…”

Effects of Dietary Supplementation of Alfalfa (Medicago Sativa) Fibre on the Blood Biochemistry, Nitrogen Metabolism, and Intestinal Morphometry in Weaning Piglets

“…The following formula (Eqs. [1][2][3][4][5][6] was used to estimate the N metabolism in the diet, urine, and fecal samples.…”

“…The increasing consumer demand for organic food products such as natural pork and the emergence of antibiotic resistance among many pathogenic microorganisms has necessitated the search for an alternative approach to healthy production systems and the control of microbial infection in pigs (Che et al, 2018;Adams et al, 2019aAdams et al, , 2019b. The use of different plant base components such as dietary fibre, prebiotics, and polysaccharide seem to be promising (Griggs and Jacob, 2005;Che et al, 2018;Adams et al, 2018a).…”