Influence of the probiotic Bacillus cereus var. toyoi on the intestinal immunity of piglets

Abstract

In a feeding trial, sows and piglets were fed with the probiotic bacterium Bacillus cereus var. toyoi as a feed additive, and the effects on immune cell populations were examined. The development of the gut immune system was determined for piglets at the ages of 14, 28, 35 and 56 days post partum. Tissue samples of the Jejunum and the continuous Peyer's patch were used for enumeration of intraepithelial lymphocyte populations by fluorescence activated flow cytometry and fluorescence microscopy. Both independent methods of investigation led to similar results: the population of intraepithelial CD8+ T cells was significantly enhanced in the probiotic group piglets (p< or =0.05), and the numbers of gammadelta T cells tended to be higher in the intestinal epithelium (p<0.1) at the time of weaning (day 28). Lamina propria lymphocytes were also influenced by the treatment. Application of B. cereus var. toyoi resulted in significantly more CD25+ lymphocytes and gammadelta T cells in the probiotic group post-weaning. The occurrence of pathogenic Escherichia coli serogroups was also less frequent in the feces of piglets from the probiotic group. The finding that the CD8+ T cell population in the intestinal mucosa showed changes on day 28 indicated that the influence of B. cereus var. toyoi supplementation on the intestinal immune system started before weaning, an observation supported by changes in the intestinal microflora observed during the suckling-period. The results suggest that feeding of B. cereus var. toyoi to sows may result in beneficial effects on piglet health status independent of their feed supplementation.

Alternatives to antibiotic growth promoters in prevention of diarrhoea in weaned piglets: a review

“…Multiple studies have confirmed the stimulating effects of probiotics on the intestinal environment (Barrow et al, 1977;Roth et al, 1992b; Depta et al, 1998;Mathew et al, 1998;Jadamus et al, 2001;Scharek et al, 2005Scharek et al, , 2007Reiter et al, 2006;Lodemann et al, 2008). By lowering the pH value in the small intestine and producing organic acids and antibacterial substances probiotic supplements inhibit pathogenic microorganisms, improve the intestinal microflora and stimulate immune function (Kumprecht et al, 1994;MantereAlhonen, 1995;Marinho, 2007).…”

“…Intestinal microflora can be modulated by the supplementation of feeds with probiotic bacterial species of the genera Lactobacillus, Bifidobacterium (Bomba et al, 1998), Bacillus (Roth et al, 1992b;Alexopoulos et al, 2001;Scharek et al, 2005Scharek et al, , 2007, Enterococcus and Streptococcus (Scharek et al, 2005(Scharek et al, , 2007 and their combinations (Mathew et al, 1998;Bomba et al, 2002). The bacteria Enterococcus faecium were found to be able to prevent the K88 Table 2.…”

“…While some authors have observed beneficial effects of several members of the genera Lactobacillus and Bacillus (Depta et al, 1998;Bomba et al, 1999Bomba et al, , 2002Kyriakis et al, 1999;Reiter et al, 2006;Scharek et al, 2007), others have failed to confirm any stimulating effect on the composition of the pig intestinal microflora (Spriet et al, 1987;De Cupere et al, 1992;Newbold et al, 1995). These contradictory results can be explained by the low doses of the used species of probiotic bacteria, their stability, interactions with other medications, and the health condition, age and genetic predisposition of animals (Kyriakis, 1999;Reiter et al, 2006).…”

“…The effects in both experiments were strictly specific and no direct protective function was observed. On the other hand, Melin and Wallgren (2002) applied non-virulent E. coli in combination with zinc oxide Enterococcus/ E. faecium Jin and Zhao (2000); Scharek et al (2005Scharek et al ( , 2007 none Saccharomyces/ S. cerevisiae Mathew et al (1993) Newbold et al (1995; Mathew et al (1998) and a mixture of lactulose and fibre and observed a markedly reduced incidence of PWD in comparison with the control group. The genus Bacillus, especially its members B. subtilis and B. licheniformis have been described to markedly reduce the severity of diarrhoea caused by E. coli (Adami and Cavazzoni, 1999;Kyriakis et al, 1999;La Ragione et al, 2001;Link et al, 2005) and at the same time improve growth parameters in weaned piglets (Roth et al, 1992b;Alexopoulos et al, 2001), whilst no improvement in health was observed after application of B. toyoi to sows and their piglets in a previous study (Martelli, 1992).…”

An interdisciplinary study on the mode of action of probiotics in pigs

“…For enumeration of intraepithelial lymphocyte population fluorescence activated flow cytometry was applied, in some cases expanded by fluorescence microscopy. The detailed results are documented in several publications (Scharek et al, 2005(Scharek et al, , 2007bSchierack et al, 2007Schierack et al, , 2009. Following only some of the main findings are summarized.…”