Effects of Partially Hydrolyzed Guar Gum Supplementation on the Fecal Microbiotas of Piglets

Abstract

Probiotics and prebiotics have become viable alternatives of growth-promoting antimicrobials in animal production. Here, we tested partially hydrolyzed guar gum (PHGG) as a possible prebiotic for piglets in the commercial farm. Five hundred and ninety-four piglets were used for the experiments, with 293 given a normal pig feed (control), while the rest the feed plus 0.06% (w/w) of PHGG (PHGG). One and three months post-PHGG supplementation, fecal samples were collected from randomly selected 20 piglets in each group and analyzed for microbiota and organic acid concentrations. Notably, the abundance of Streptococcus, and unclassified Ruminococcaceae were lower (p < 0.05) in PHGG than in control, one-month post-supplementation. Lactobacillus and Prevotella were higher (p < 0.05), while Streptococcus was lower (p < 0.05), in PHGG than in control, three months post-supplementation. The concentrations of acetate, propionate, and butyrate were greater in PHGG than in control, three months post-supplementation. Finally, PHGG grew faster and had fewer deaths until slaughter time (p < 0.05), than control. We concluded that PHGG not only was an effective prebiotic to alter gut microbiota of weanling piglets but also can possibly promote body weight accretion and health.

Modulation of Porcine Gut Microbiota and Microbiome: Hologenomic, Dietary, and Endogenous Factors

“…On the other hand, these viscous soluble fibers have been exploited as potential functional food ingredients; for example, dietary guar gum at 10–20% was shown to induce hypoglycemia [ 23 ], hypocholesterolemia [ 23 , 26 , 27 ], and enhanced anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10 abundance in the colon [ 28 ], thus having health management implications in humans and companion animals. In this Special Issue, Inoue et al [ 29 ] took a different approach and investigated the non-nutritive gut modifier prebiotic aspect of the enzymatically hydrolyzed galactomannan polysaccharide guar gum at 0.06% (Wt/Wt) from the weanling to the finisher phase in pigs. While the authors did not report chain length and viscosity changes of the enzymatically hydrolyzed guar gum, they did confirm the efficacy of dietary supplementation of the partially hydrolyzed guar gum at 0.06% in inducing increased in vivo fecal organic acid concentrations [ 29 ].…”

“…In this Special Issue, Inoue et al [ 29 ] took a different approach and investigated the non-nutritive gut modifier prebiotic aspect of the enzymatically hydrolyzed galactomannan polysaccharide guar gum at 0.06% (Wt/Wt) from the weanling to the finisher phase in pigs. While the authors did not report chain length and viscosity changes of the enzymatically hydrolyzed guar gum, they did confirm the efficacy of dietary supplementation of the partially hydrolyzed guar gum at 0.06% in inducing increased in vivo fecal organic acid concentrations [ 29 ]. The authors did not report significant differences in fresh carcass weight at the 76 kg live market weight; however, dietary supplementation of the guar gum at 0.06% reduced the total number of days needed in reaching their market BW [ 29 ].…”

“…While the authors did not report chain length and viscosity changes of the enzymatically hydrolyzed guar gum, they did confirm the efficacy of dietary supplementation of the partially hydrolyzed guar gum at 0.06% in inducing increased in vivo fecal organic acid concentrations [ 29 ]. The authors did not report significant differences in fresh carcass weight at the 76 kg live market weight; however, dietary supplementation of the guar gum at 0.06% reduced the total number of days needed in reaching their market BW [ 29 ]. Furthermore, the authors did not report any growth performance endpoints such as feed intake, average daily gain, and feed conversion efficiency, while they did observe differential responses in the fecal bacterial alpha-diversity and relative abundance responses of taxonomy at the phylum and genus levels using the V3 region 16S rRNA gene sequencing platform.…”

“…Furthermore, the authors did not report any growth performance endpoints such as feed intake, average daily gain, and feed conversion efficiency, while they did observe differential responses in the fecal bacterial alpha-diversity and relative abundance responses of taxonomy at the phylum and genus levels using the V3 region 16S rRNA gene sequencing platform. While the data from the study by Inoue et al [ 29 ] provided evidence of the prebiotic effect potential of the hydrolyzed guar gum at 0.06%, further research is needed to examine the needed growth performance and the relative abundance responses of fecal bacterial taxonomy at the bacterial species level.…”

“…Optimal gut microbiota and microbiome improve not only the efficiency of the digestive utilization but also the post-digestive utilization of dietary energy and nutrients [ 8 , 37 , 38 , 39 ]. The effects of dietary supplementation of the hydrolyzed guar gum at 0.06% on the gut microbiome responses [ 29 ]; the F18 + E. coli -challenge-induced gut dysbiosis and differential jejunal and fecal gut microbiome responses [ 22 ]; and the butyrate supplementation in mitigating the LPS-induced changes in intestinal morphology, microbiome, energy utilization, and inflammation in pigs [ 39 ] were all likely mediated through gut endogenous AP functional plasticity; however, these interplay and connections were not established in these studies. Future research is needed to deepen our understanding of how dietary, therapeutic, and physiological factors regulate the host gut microbiome, digestive function, and whole-body physiology through regulating the endogenous AP functionality in pigs.…”