Effect of Miscellaneous Meals Replacing Soybean Meal in Feed on Growth Performance, Serum Biochemical Parameters, and Microbiota Composition of 25-50 kg Growing Pigs.

The present study aims to determine the effect of miscellaneous meals (rapeseed meal, cottonseed meal, and sunflower meal) replacing soybean meal in feed on growth performance, apparent digestibility of nutrients, serum biochemical parameters, serum free amino acid content, microbiota composition and SCFAs content in growing pigs (25-50 kg). A total of 72 (Duroc × Landrace × Yorkshire) growing pigs with initial weights of 25.79 ± 0.23 kg were randomly divided into three treatments. The pigs were fed corn-soybean meal (CON), corn-soybean-miscellaneous meals (CSM), and corn-miscellaneous meals (CMM). Each treatment included six replicates with four pigs per pen (n = 24, 12 barrows and 12 gilts). Soybean meal accounted for 22.10% of the basal diet in the CON group. In the CSM group, miscellaneous meals partially replaced soybean meal with a mixture of 4.50% rapeseed meal, 3.98% cottonseed meal, and 4.50% sunflower meal. In the CMM group, miscellaneous meals entirely replaced soybean meal with a mixture of 8.50% rapeseed meal, 8.62% cottonseed meal, and 8.5% sunflower. The results showed that compared with the CON, the CSM and CMM groups significantly improved the average daily gain (ADG) of growing pigs during the 25-50 kg stage (p < 0.05) but had no effects on average daily feed intake (ADFI) and average daily feed intake/average daily gain (F/G) (p > 0.05). Moreover, the CMM group significantly reduced nutrient apparent digestibility of gross energy compared with the CON group. The serum biochemical parameters results showed that the CSM group significantly improved the contents of total protein (TP) compared with the CON group (p < 0.05). The CMM group significantly improved the contents of total protein (TP), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) compared with the CON group in serum (p < 0.05). In comparison with the CON group, the CMM group also significantly improved lysine (Lys), threonine (Thr), valine (Val), isoleucine (Ile), leucine (Leu), phenylalanine (Phe), arginine (Arg), and citrulline (Cit) levels in serum (p < 0.05). However, the CMM group significantly decreased non-essential amino acid content glycine (Gly) in serum compared with CON (p < 0.05), while compared with the CON group, the CSM and CMM groups had no significant effects on the relative abundance, the alpha-diversity, or the beta-diversity of fecal microbiota. Moreover, compared with the CON group, the CSM group significantly increased butyric acid and valeric acid contents of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) in feces (p < 0.05). In contrast to the CON group, the CMM group significantly reduced the contents of SCFAs in feces, including acetic acid, propionic acid, and isobutyric acid (p < 0.05). Collectively, the results of the present study indicate that miscellaneous meals (rapeseed meal, cottonseed meal, and sunflower meal) can partially replace the soybean meal and significantly improve the growth performance of growing pigs during the 25-50 kg stage. Thus, miscellaneous meals are a suitable protein source as basal diets to replace soybean meals for 25-50 kg growing pigs. These results can be helpful to further develop miscellaneous meals as a functional alternative feed ingredient to soybean meal.

Arginine and its metabolites stimulate proliferation, differentiation, and physiological function of porcine trophoblast cells through ß-catenin and mTOR pathways.

Arginine, which is metabolized into ornithine, proline, and nitric oxide, plays an important role in embryonic development. The present study was conducted to investigate the molecular mechanism of arginine in proliferation, differentiation, and physiological function of porcine trophoblast cells (pTr2) through metabolic pathways. The results showed that arginine significantly increased cell viability (P < 0.05). The addition of arginine had a quadratic tendency to increase the content of progesterone (P = 0.06) and protein synthesis rate (P = 0.03), in which the maximum protein synthesis rate was observed at 0.4 mM arginine. Arginine quadratically increased (P < 0.05) the intracellular contents of spermine, spermidine and putrescine, as well as linearly increased (P < 0.05) the intracellular content of NO in a dose-dependent manner. Arginine showed a quadratic tendency to increase the content of putrescine (P = 0.07) and a linear tendency to increase NO content (P = 0.09) in cell supernatant. Moreover, increasing arginine activated (P < 0.05) the mRNA expressions for ARG, ODC, iNOS and PCNA. Furthermore, inhibitors of arginine metabolism (L-NMMA and DFMO) both inhibited cell proliferation, while addition of its metabolites (NO and putrescine) promoted the cell proliferation and cell cycle, the mRNA expressions of PCNA, EGF and IGF-1, and increased (P < 0.05) cellular protein synthesis rate, as well as estradiol and hCG secretion (P < 0.05). In conclusion, our results suggested that arginine could promote cell proliferation and physiological function by regulating the metabolic pathway. Further studies showed that arginine and its metabolites modulate cell function mainly through ß-catenin and mTOR pathways.

Maternal resveratrol improves the intestinal health and weight gain of suckling piglets during high summer temperatures: The involvement of exosome-derived microRNAs and immunoglobin in colostrum.

Previous studies have shown that maternal resveratrol improved growth performance and altered the microbial composition of suckling piglets under hot summer conditions. However, it remains unclear how maternal resveratrol improves growth performance of suckling piglets during high summer temperatures. A total of 20 sows (Landrace × Large White; three parity) were randomly assigned to 2 groups (with or without 300 mg/kg resveratrol) from d 75 of gestation to d 21 of lactation during high ambient temperatures (from 27 to 30 °C). The results showed that maternal resveratrol supplementation increased total daily weight gain of piglets under hot summer conditions, which is consistent with previous studies. Furthermore, we found that maternal resveratrol improved the intestinal morphology and intestinal epithelial proliferation in suckling piglets. Dietary resveratrol supplementation affected the characteristics of exosome-derived microRNAs (miRNAs) in sow colostrum, as well as the genes targeted by differentially produced miRNAs. MiRNAs are concentrated in the tight junction pathway. As a result, the expression of intestinal tight junction proteins was increased in suckling piglets (P < 0.05). Notably, maternal resveratrol increased the intestinal secretory immunoglobulin A (sIgA) levels of suckling piglets via colostrum immunoglobin (P < 0.05), which could increase the abundance of beneficial microbiota to further increase the concentration of short chain fatty acids (SCFA) in suckling piglets' intestine (P < 0.05). Finally, our correlation analysis further demonstrated the positive associations between significantly differential intestinal microbiota, intestinal sIgA production and SCFA concentrations, as well as the positive relation between total daily weight gain and intestinal health of suckling piglets. Taken together, our findings suggested that maternal resveratrol could promote intestinal health to improve piglet growth during high summer temperatures, which might be associated with the immunoglobin and exosome-derived miRNAs in sows' colostrum.

Effect of mixed meal replacement of soybean meal on growth performance, nutrient apparent digestibility, and gut microbiota of finishing pigs.

Introduction: This study was carried out to investigate the effects of mixed meal (rapeseed meal, cotton meal, and sunflower meal) replacement soybean meal on growth performance, nutrient apparent digestibility, serum inflammatory factors and immunoglobulins, serum biochemical parameters, intestinal permeability, short-chain fatty acid content, and gut microbiota of finishing pigs. Methods: A total of 54 pigs with an average initial weight of 97.60 ± 0.30 kg were selected and randomly divided into 3 groups according to their initial weight, with 6 replicates in each group and 3 pigs in each replicate. The trial period was 26 days. The groups were as follows: control group (CON), fed corn-soybean meal type basal diet; Corn-soybean-mixed meal group (CSM), fed corn-soybean meal-mixed meal diet with a ratio of rapeseed meal, cotton meal, and sunflower meal of 1:1:1 to replace 9.06% soybean meal in the basal diet; Corn-mixed meal group (CMM), fed a corn-mixed meal diet with a ratio of Rapeseed meal, Cotton meal and Sunflower meal of 1:1:1 to replace soybean meal in the basal diet completely. The crude protein level of the three diets was maintained at 12.5%. Results: Our findings revealed no significant impact of replacing soybean meal with the mixed meal (rapeseed meal, cotton meal, and sunflower meal) on the ADG (Average daily gain), ADFI (Average daily feed intake), and F/G (Feed gain ratio) (P > 0.05), or crude protein, crude fat, and gross energy (P > 0.05) in the diet of finishing pigs. Compared with the CON group, the serum interleukin 6 (IL-6) and interleukin 10 (IL-10) concentrations were significantly decreased in the CMM group (P < 0.05). However, there is no significant effect of the mixed meal (rapeseed meal, cotton meal, and sunflower meal) replacing soybean meal in the diet on the serum interleukin 1ß (IL-1ß), interleukin 8 (IL-8), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), immunoglobulin A (IgA), immunoglobulin G (IgG), and immunoglobulin M (IgM) concentrations (P > 0.05). Concordantly, there is no significant effect of mixed meal (rapeseed meal, cotton meal, and sunflower meal) replacing soybean meal in the diet on the serum antioxidant capacity, such as total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC), catalase (CAT), and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels of finishing pigs. Moreover, compared with the CON group, serum low-density lipoprotein (LDL-C) levels were significantly lower in the CSM group (P < 0.05) and their total bilirubin (TBIL) levels were significantly lower in the CMM group (P < 0.05). There is not a significant effect on serum D-lactate and diamine oxidase (DAO) concentrations (P > 0.05). The next section of the survey showed that the replacement of soybean meal with a mixed meal (rapeseed meal, cotton meal, and sunflower meal) in the diet did not significantly influence the acetic acid, propionic acid, butyric acid, valeric acid, isobutyric acid, and isovaleric acid in the colon contents (P > 0.05). Furthermore, compared with the CON group, the CMM group diet significantly increased the abundance of Actinobacteria at the phylum level (P < 0.05), U_Actinobacteria at the class level (P < 0.05), and U_Bacteria at the class level (P < 0.05). The result also showed that the CMM group significantly reduced the abundance of Oscillospirales at the order level (P < 0.05) and Streptococcaceae at the family level (P < 0.05) compared with the CON group. The Spearman correlation analysis depicted a statistically significant positive correlation identified at the class level between the relative abundance of U_Bacteria and the serum T. BILI concentrations (P < 0.05). Moreover, a significant negative correlation was detected at the order level between the relative abundance of Oscillospirales and the levels of acetic and propionic acids in the colonic contents (P < 0.05). Additionally, there was a significant positive correlation between the serum concentrations of IL-6 and IL-10 and the relative abundance of the family Streptococcaceae (P < 0.05). Discussion: This study demonstrated that the mixed meal (rapeseed meal, cotton meal, and sunflower meal) as a substitute for soybean meal in the diet had no significant negative effects on the growth performance, nutrient apparent digestibility, serum immunoglobulins, serum antioxidant capacity, intestinal permeability, short-chain fatty acid content, and diversity of gut microbiota of finishing pigs. These results can help develop further mixed meals (rapeseed meal, cotton meal, and sunflower meal) as a functional alternative feed ingredient for soybean meals in pig diets.

Effects of Vitamin A on Growth Performance, Antioxidants, Gut Inflammation, and Microbes in Weaned Piglets.

Piglet weaning is an important stage in production where changes in the environment and diet can cause problems such as intestinal inflammation and diarrhea. Vitamin A is an essential nutrient for human and animal growth and has immunomodulatory and inflammatory effects. A large body of literature has previously reported on the use of vitamin A in piglet production, so our experiment added different concentrations of vitamin A (0, 1100, 2200, 4400, 8800, and 17,600 IU/kg) to weaned piglet diets to study the effects of different doses on growth performance, intestinal barrier, inflammation, and flora in weaned piglets. We selected 4400 IU/kg as the optimum concentration of vitamin A in relation to average daily weight gain, feed intake, feed-to-weight ratio, and diarrhea rate, and subsequently tested the inflammatory factors, immunoglobulin content, antioxidant levels, and intestinal flora of weaned piglets. Results: We observed that the diarrhea rate of weaned piglets was significantly lower after the addition of 4400 IU/kg of vitamin A to the diet (p < 0.05). A control group and a 4400 IU/kg VA group were selected for subsequent experiments. We found that after the addition of vitamin A, the serum CAT level of weaned piglets increased significantly, the expression of Claudin-1 in the jejunum and ileum increased significantly, the expression of Occludin gene in the jejunum increased significantly, the expression of IL-5 and IL-10 in the ileum increased significantly (p < 0.05), and the expression of IL-4, IL-5, and IL-10 in the ileum increased significantly (p < 0.05). Meanwhile, in the colonic flora of vitamin A-added weaned piglets, the relative abundance of Actinobacteria and Erysipelotrichales decreased significantly, while the relative abundance of Bacteroidales increased significantly (p < 0.05). The results of this study indicated that vitamin A at 4400 IU/kg reduces diarrhea in weaned piglets by increasing antioxidant levels, increasing intestinal tight junction protein gene expression, and regulating colonic gut microbiota.

Effect of Miscellaneous Meal Replacements for Soybean Meal on Growth Performance, Serum Biochemical Parameters, and Gut Microbiota of 50-75 kg Growing Pigs.

This study was carried out to investigate the effects of miscellaneous meal (rapeseed meal, cottonseed meal, and sunflower seed meal) as a replacement for soybean meal on growth performance, apparent nutrient digestibility, serum biochemical parameters, serum free amino acid contents, and gut microbiota of 50-75 kg growing pigs. A total of 54 healthy growing pigs (Duroc × Landrace × Yorkshire) with initial body weights (BWs) of 50.64 ± 2.09 kg were randomly divided into three treatment groups, which included the corn-soybean meal group (CON), corn-soybean-miscellaneous meal group (CSM), and corn-miscellaneous meal group (CM). Each treatment included six replicates with three pigs in each replicate. Dietary protein levels were maintained at 15% in all three treatment groups. Additional rapeseed meals, cottonseed meals, and sunflower seed meals were added to the CSM group's meals to partially replace the 10.99% soybean meal in the CON group in a 1:1:1 ratio. Pigs in the CM group were fed a diet with a mixture of miscellaneous meals (7.69% rapeseed meal, 7.69% cottonseed meal, and 7.68% sunflower seed meal) to totally replace soybean meal. Our findings revealed that there was no significant impact of replacing soybean meal with miscellaneous meal on the ADG (average daily gain), ADFI (average daily feed intake), or F/G (feed-to-gain ratio) (p > 0.05) of growing pigs weighing 50-75 kg, nor on the crude protein, crude fat, or gross energy (p > 0.05) of the diet. On the other hand, compared to the CON group, the CM group exhibited significantly elevated serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and triglyceride (TG) levels (p < 0.05), while urea levels were significantly reduced (p < 0.05). No significant effect was observed on the serum free amino acid contents (p > 0.05) following the substitution of soybean meal with miscellaneous meal. A t-test analysis indicated that compared with the CON group, the CM group exhibited a significantly diminished abundance of Euryachaeota at the phylum level and augmented abundance of Desulfobacterota at the genus level. This study demonstrated that the miscellaneous meals (rapeseed meal, cottonseed meal, and sunflower seed meal) as a substitute for soybean meal in the diet had no significant negative effects on the growth performance, apparent nutrient digestibility, serum amino acid content, or diversity of fecal microbiota in 50-75 kg growing pigs. These results can be helpful in developing further miscellaneous meals (rapeseed meal, cottonseed meal, and sunflower seed meal) as functional alternative feed ingredients to soybean meal in pig diets.

Glutamine protects intestinal immunity through microbial metabolites rather than microbiota.

Glutamine has anti-inflammatory properties as well as the ability to maintain the integrity of the intestinal barrier. In our previous study, we found that 1.0% glutamine promoted SIgA (secretory immunoglobulin A) synthesis in the gut via both T cell-dependent and non-dependent processes, as well as via the intestinal microbiota. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether the intestinal microbiota or microbial metabolites regulate SIgA synthesis. In the mouse model, supplementation with 1.0% glutamine had no significant effect on the intestinal microbiota, but KEGG function prediction showed the difference on microbiota metabolites. Therefore, in this study, untargeted metabolomics techniques were used to detect and analyze the metabolic changes of glutamine in intestinal luminal contents. Metabolomics showed that in the positive ion (POS) mode, a total of 1446 metabolic differentials (VIP ≥ 1, P < 0.05, FC ≥ 2 or FC ≤ 0.5) were annotated in samples treated with glutamine-supplemented group compared to control group, of which 922 were up-regulated and 524 down-regulated. In the negative ion (NEG) mode, 370 differential metabolites (VIP ≥ 1, P < 0.05, FC ≥ 2 or FC ≤ 0.5) were screened, of which 220 were up-regulated and 150 down-regulated. These differential metabolites mainly include bile secretion synthesis, ABC transporters, diterpenoids and other secondary metabolites. KEGG analysis showed that propionic acid metabolism, TCA cycle, endoplasmic reticulum protein processing, nitrogen metabolism and other metabolic pathways were active. The above metabolic pathways and differential metabolites have positive effects on intestinal development and intestinal immunity, and combined with our previous studies, we conclude that glutamine supplementation can may maintain intestinal homeostasis and improving intestinal immunity through intestinal microbial metabolites.

Taurine alleviates oxidative stress in porcine mammary epithelial cells by stimulating the Nrf2-MAPK signaling pathway.

The high incidence of oxidative stress in sows during late gestation and lactation affects mammary gland health, milk yield, and milk quality. Recently, we found that supplementing maternal diets with 1% taurine improved antioxidant capability and enhanced growth performance in offspring; however, the mechanisms underlying these are unknown. This study aimed to investigate the cytoprotective effects and the mechanism of taurine in mitigating oxidative stress in porcine mammary epithelial cells (PMECs). PMECs were pretreated with 0-2.0 mM taurine for 12 h and then subjected to oxidative injury with 500 µM hydrogen peroxide (H2O2). Pretreatment with taurine attenuated decreased cell viability, enhanced superoxide dismutase, and reduced the intracellular reactive oxygen species accumulation after H2O2 exposure. Taurine also prevented H2O2-induced endoplasmic reticulum stress. Nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) was essential to the cytoprotective effects of taurine on PMECs, as Nrf2 knockdown significantly inhibited taurine-induced cytoprotection against oxidative stress. Moreover, we confirmed that Nrf2 induction by taurine was mediated through the inactivation of the p38/MAPK pathway. Overall, taurine supplementation has beneficial effects on redox balance regulation and may protect against oxidative stress in lactating animals.

Tunable Reaction Mode of Bifunctional Peroxides with Ketones to Access α-Oxacyclic Ketones and Enals.

A new annulation reaction between allylic/benzylic peroxides and ketones has been developed to provide the α-oxacyclic ketones in moderate yields under the KOtBu basic conditions. Mechanistic studies reveal that these peroxides undergo the Kornblum-DeLaMare rearrangement to release the aldehyde intermediates and subsequently initiate the aldol/etherification tandem process to deliver the final products. Accordingly, these peroxides serving as "masked" enals have also been utilized to prepare the previously hard-to-achieve α-enal-tethered ketones in one step.

Dietary Stevia Residue Extract Supplementation Improves Antioxidant Capacity and Intestinal Microbial Composition of Weaned Piglets.

This study aimed to investigate the effects of diet supplementation with stevia residue extract (SRE) on growth performance, intestinal health, and antioxidant capacity of weaned piglets. A total of 144 weaned piglets (body weight 6.8 ± 0.5 kg) were randomly selected and allocated into four treatment groups with six replicates of six pigs/pen. The treatments consisted of a basal diet without SRE or basal diet supplemented with 100, 200, or 400 mg/kg SRE. The results showed that the addition of 200 mg/kg SRE to the diet significantly reduced (p < 0.05) the diarrhea rate of piglets compared with the control group. The supplementation of 400 mg/kg SRE in the diet significantly reduced the piglets' serum MDA content and significantly increased (p < 0.05) the T-AOC, T-SOD, and GSH-PX activity in the serum. The dietary supplementation with 400 mg/kg SRE significantly increased (p < 0.05) the CAT and GSH-PX activity in the liver. Moreover, the supplementation of 400 mg/kg SRE in the diet significantly increased (p < 0.05) the relative abundance of Prevotellaceae (genus) and Roseburia (genus) beneficial bacteria compared to the control group. Spearman's correlation analysis showed that Prevotella (genus) abundance was positively correlated with liver GSH-PX activity and acetic acid content of colon contents. In conclusion, the supplementation of 400 mg/kg SRE to the diet can improve piglet health by regulating antioxidant reduction homeostasis, which may also be associated with an increase in the relative numbers of potentially beneficial bacteria.

Maternal resveratrol regulates the growth performance, antioxidant capacity, and intestinal health of suckling piglets through intestinal microorganisms at high summer temperatures.

Background: Resveratrol has numerous beneficial properties, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and immunomodulatory properties. High summer temperatures in Southern China affect the reproductive performance of sows. The present study aimed to investigate the effects of dietary resveratrol supplementation in different thermal environments on the reproductive performance, antioxidant capacity, immune function, and intestinal microbes of sows and piglets during late gestation and lactation, as well as their relationship with colostrum immunoglobulin. Methods: A two-phase experiment was conducted with 40 healthy multiparous sows. In the first phase of the experiment, 20 sows were used in a moderate temperature environment, and in the second phase of the experiment, the remaining 20 sows were used in a high-temperature environment. In both phases, sows were fed either a control diet or a diet consists of control diet and 300 mg/kg resveratrol starting on day 75 of gestation. Plasma, milk, and fecal samples were collected to obtain the indices of antioxidant capacity, immune function, and intestinal microbes. Results: The results showed that resveratrol supplementation increased the number of live births by 13.24 and 26.79% in the first and second phases, respectively, compared with the control group. In the second phase, resveratrol supplementation increased litter weight at weaning and in the concentrations of growth hormone (GH), insulin (INS), progesterone (PROG), triglycerides, and uric acid (UA). The plasma superoxide dismutase (SOD) level on day 110 of gestation and day 14 of lactation, as well as glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) on day 14 of lactation in the first phase, showed an increasing trend (p = 0.0728, p = 0.0932, and p = 0.067, respectively) in the resveratrol group, compared with the control group. On day 14 of lactation, the plasma total antioxidant capability (T-AOC) level was higher in the second phase, while the plasma malondialdehyde (MDA) level was lower in both phases in the resveratrol group. Resveratrol supplementation increased the abundance of immunoglobulin A (IgA), immunoglobulin G (IgG), and immunoglobulin M (IgM) in colostrum and the relative abundance of Lactobacillus and Alloprevotella but decreased the relative abundance of Escherichia-shigella in piglet feces in the second phase. In addition, Spearman's correlation analysis indicated that the weight gain of weaned piglets was positively (p < 0.05) associated with IgM content in colostrum and the abundance of Lactobacillus in the fecal microbiota of piglets in the second phase. Moreover, the abundance of Alloprevotella was positively correlated with the contents of IgA and IgG in colostrum, while the abundance of Lactobacillus was positively correlated with IgM content. Conclusion: These findings indicated that maternal resveratrol supplementation could enhance the growth performance, antioxidant capacity, and intestinal health of piglets in a high temperature environment, which might be associated with increased immunoglobin secretion from colostrum.

Dietary supplementation with potassium-magnesium sulfate modulates the antioxidant capacity, immunity, and gut microbiota in weaned piglets.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of different levels of potassium magnesium sulfateon (PMS) on growth performance, diarrhea rate, intestinal morphology, antioxidant capacity, intestinal immunity, and gut microbiota in weaned piglets. A total of 216 weaned piglets were randomly divided into six dietary groups: the basal diet with 0% (CON), 0.15, 0.3, 0.45, 0.6, and 0.75% PMS. The results showed that the ADFI of 29-42 days and 1-42 days was linearly and quadratically increased by the PMS supplementation (P < 0.05), and significantly reduced the diarrhea rate in weaned piglets (P < 0.05). Moreover, dietary supplementation with PMS significantly reduced the serum adrenaline and noradrenaline levels in weaned piglets (P < 0.05). Furthermore, 0.3% PMS significantly increased the activity of glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) in the jejunum (P < 0.05) and tended to increase the activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) in the jejunal mucosa of piglets (P < 0.1). Additionally, dietary supplementation with PMS significantly reduced the interleukin-1ß (IL-1ß) level in the jejunal mucosa (P < 0.05), and 0.3% PMS increased the serum IgM content in piglets (P < 0.05). Furthermore, the analysis of colonic microbiota by 16S RNA sequencing showed that the addition of PMS increased the Shannon index (P < 0.05) and Observed Species index (P < 0.05). Based on linear discriminant analysis effect size (LEfSe) and T-test analysis, the addition of PMS increased the relative abundance of Ruminococcaceae and Peptostreptococcaceae in the colonic digesta (P < 0.05). Spearman analysis showed that there was a positive correlation between intestinal GSH-Px activity and the relative abundance of Peptostreptococcaceae. These results showed that dietary supplementation with PMS could improve growth performance, alleviate diarrhea incidence, and modulate the antioxidant capacity and intestinal immunity in weaned piglets, which was partially related to the significant changes in colonic microbiota composition.

Effects of Fermented Feed on the Growth Performance, Intestinal Function, and Microbiota of Piglets Weaned at Different Age.

The beneficial function of fermented feed in livestock industry has been widely investigated. However, little is known about the effects of fermented feed on different weaned-day piglets. This study aimed to investigate the effects of fermented diet on the growth performance, intestinal function, and microbiota of piglets weaned at the age of 21 and 28 days. The results found that weaning on day 21 significantly increased (p < 0.05) average daily gain (ADG), and average daily feed intake (ADFI) (calculated based on wet weight and dry matter), while reduced (p < 0.05) feed to gain ratio (F:G), the activities of trypsin and lipase of jejunum and the villus height of ileum, compared with 28-days weaning. The protein levels of Occludin, Claudin-1, and ZO-1 of ileum in the groups weaning on day 21 were less (p < 0.05) than the groups weaning on day 28. Moreover, dietary supplementation with fermented diet upregulated (p < 0.05) the Occludin, Claudin-1, and ZO-1 proteins of ileum, compared with the groups treated with control diet both weaning on day 21 and 28. In addition, dietary supplementation with fermented diet decreased (p < 0.05) the relative abundance of Clostridia (class) and increased (p < 0.05) the Bacteroidia (class) level of cecal microbiota, compared with the groups treated with control diet both weaning on day 21 and 28. However, supplementation with fermented diet did not affect the concentrations of short-chain fatty acids in the cecum (p > 0.05). Therefore, our data suggest that the feed digestibility is improved in piglets weaned at 21 days, but intestinal barrier function is weaker than in piglets weaned at 28 days. However, compared with feeding control diet, supplementation with fermented diet both improved the feed conversion and intestinal barrier function of weaned piglets by modulating intestinal microbiota.

Effects of early sub-therapeutic antibiotic administration on body tissue deposition, gut microbiota and metabolite profiles of weaned piglets.

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to evaluate the effects of sub-therapeutic antibiotic (STA) administration and its subsequent withdrawal on the body tissue deposition, gut microbiota, and metabolite profiles of piglets. The piglets in the experimental group were fed with STA (30 mg kg-1 bacitracin methylene disalicylate, 75 mg kg-1 chlortetracycline, 300 mg kg-1 calcium oxytetracycline) for 14 days and the target bodyweight of the withdrawal period was 25 kg. RESULTS: The experiment was divided into two periods: the administration period and the withdrawal period. The results showed that STA did not improve piglets' growth performance during the two periods. Piglets treated with STA had lower body water deposition during the withdrawal period and tended to increase body lipid deposition during the withdrawal period and the whole period in comparison with the piglets in the control group. It was found that STA markedly altered the colonic microbiota and their metabolites in the piglets. Sub-therapeutic antibiotics were initially effective in decreasing the abundance of pathogenic bacteria during the administration period; however, STA could not continue the effect during the withdrawal period, leading to a rebound of pathogenic bacteria such as Alloprevotella and the increased abundance of other pathogenic bacteria like Oscillibacter. Remarkably, STA treatment decreased Blautia abundance. This bacterium plays a potential protective role against obesity. Metabolomic analysis indicated that STA mainly altered amino acid metabolism, lipid metabolism, and carbohydrate metabolism during the two periods. Spearman's correlation analysis showed that the gut microbiota was highly correlated with microbial metabolite changes. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that early STA administration may alter body tissue deposition later in life by reshaping the gut microbiota and their metabolite profiles. © 2022 Society of Chemical Industry.

Meta-analysis of energy intake of growing-finishing pigs in China.

Data from 655 treatments of 116 studies were used in a meta-analysis to determine the daily digestible energy (DE), metabolizable energy (ME) and net energy (NE) intake of Chinese growing-finishing pigs, and to predict feed efficiency responses to change in dietary DE, ME and NE. Three alternative functions (i.e., polynomial, Bridges and asymptotic function) were employed for fitting daily DE, ME or NE intakes to mean body weight. The results showed that the three models from the current study provided reasonable fit (all R2  > 0.83) for the energy intake data. However, under the same energy system, the polynomial function had the smallest Akaike's information criteria (AIC) and residual standard deviation (RSD), followed by Bridges and asymptotic functions. The three model-generated energy intakes of growing pigs were significantly less than that of the Chinese Feeding Standard of Swine, but similar to that of the National Research Council (2012), while the values of finishing pigs were greater than both standards. Compared with those that predict feed efficiency based on DE or ME, the equation with NE as a predictor had the minimized AIC and RSD. It was also found that feed efficiency increased with increasing dietary energy density (DED), but this response varied with pig body weight, and the lighter pigs were more sensitive to DED than heavier pigs.

Effects of phytase and 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 supplementation on growth performance and bone development in weaned piglets in Ca- and P-deficient dietary.

BACKGROUND: The beneficial function of phytase and 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 (HyD) on the feed utilization rate has been widely investigated. However, studies concerning its influence on weaned piglets largely lag behind. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of phytase and HyD supplementation on the growth performance and bone development in weaned piglets under dietary Ca and P deficiency. RESULTS: The results showed that dietary Ca and P deficiency decreased (P < 0.05) the content of serum P in 6-10 kg piglets, as well as reducing (P < 0.05) the contents of serum Ca and P, average daily gain (ADG), bone mineral density (BMD), breaking force (BF), bone ash and femur Ca in 10-20 kg piglets. Compared with the control group, the feed-to-gain ratio (F/G) of 6-10 kg piglets in the Phy group was decreased (P < 0.05), whereas the ADG, blood Ca and P, BMD, BF, bone ash, P apparent digestibility, Ca and P retention rate of 10-20 kg piglets were increased (P < 0.05). The contents of serum osteocalcin and HyD in 6-10 kg piglets and ADG were higher than in the control group (P < 0.05), as well as the contents of serum Ca and HyD in 10-20 kg piglets in the HyD treatment group. Supplementation with both Phy and HyD decreased the F/D (P < 0.05) and increased the contents of serum Ca, P and HyD in 6-10 kg piglets as well as enhancing the ADG, BMD, BF, bone ash, femur Ca and P, serum Ca and P, HyD, and the apparent digestibility and retention of Ca and P (P < 0.05) in 10-20 kg piglets. Supplementation with Phy and HyD in Ca- and P-deficient dietary decreased bone resorption, and improved tight arrangement of collagen fibers and oblique fibers in weaned piglets. CONCLUSION: These data indicated that supplementation with both 1500 U kg-1 Phy and 50 µg kg-1 HyD could enhance dietary Ca and P utilization and promote bone development in low Ca and P dietary, and supplementation with both Phy and HyD had a significant synergy effect compared to single supplement. © 2021 Society of Chemical Industry.

Mammary tissue proteomics in a pig model indicates that dietary valine supplementation increases milk fat content via increased de novo synthesis of fatty acid.

Milk fat is a major source of energy that determines the growth of neonates. Recently, studies have shown that valine is closely related to lipid metabolism. Therefore, this study was designed to investigate the effects of dietary valine supplementation on milk fat synthesis using a pig model. Thirty gilts were allotted to low (LV, total valine:lysine = 0.63:1), medium (MV, total valine:lysine = 0.73:1), and high (HV, total valine:lysine = 0.93:1) valine feeding levels from Day 75 of gestation till farrowing. The results demonstrated that the concentration of milk fat at Days 1, 3, and 7 of lactation in the HV group was higher than that in the MV and LV groups. The HV group had an increased (p < .05) proportion of total saturated and monounsaturated fatty acids than the other groups. Examination of mammary tissue proteomics in the HV and LV groups revealed 121 differentially expressed proteins (68 upregulated and 53 downregulated in the HV group). The upregulated proteins in the HV group were relevant to some crucial pathways related to milk fat synthesis, including fatty acid biosynthesis and metabolism, the AMPK signaling pathway, and oxidative phosphorylation. Furthermore, the key proteins involved in fatty acid synthesis (ACACA and FASN) were identified, and their expression levels were verified (p < .05) using Western blotting. Our findings revealed that dietary valine supplementation improves milk fat synthesis by modulating the expression of fatty acid synthesis-related proteins in mammary tissues.

Phase-Transfer Catalyzed Asymmetric [4 + 1] Annulations for the Synthesis of Chiral 2,2-Disubstituted Tetrahydrothiophenes.

An efficient catalytic asymmetric [4 + 1] reaction, which features the use of simple ß-keto esters as one-carbon nucleophiles and 5-succinimidothio-pent-2-enoates as four-atom bielectrophiles, has been developed in the presence of a bifunctional chiral phase-transfer catalyst. The new annulation provides a distinct protocol to access the functionalized 2-acyl-2-carboxyl tetrahydrothiophenes bearing consecutive quaternary and tertiary carbon stereocenters in high diastereoselectivities and enantioselectivities. Moreover, the prepared products could be readily transformed into the chiral 2-alkyl-2-carboxyl tetrahydrothiophenes via two steps of debenzoylation and alkylation reactions.

Effects of Protein Restriction and Subsequent Realimentation on Body Composition, Gut Microbiota and Metabolite Profiles in Weaned Piglets.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of protein restriction and subsequent protein realimentation on the body composition, gut microbiota and metabolite profiles of piglets. Fifty weaned piglets were randomly assigned to two treatments: a normal protein (NP) group (20% crude protein (CP)) or a low protein (LP) group (16% CP) with five animals per pen and five pens per group. Treatment diets were fed for 14 d during the protein restriction phase, and then all pigs were fed the same nursery diets with a normal CP level (19% CP) during the protein realimentation phase until they reached an average target body weight (BW) of 25 ± 0.15 kg. At day 14 and the end of the experiment, one piglet close to the average BW of each pen was slaughtered to determine body composition, microbial composition and microbial metabolites. Results showed that there was no difference (p > 0.05) in the experimental days to reach target BW between the LP and NP groups. The average daily gain (ADG) and gain:feed ratio (G:F) during the protein restriction phase as well as BW at day 14, were significantly decreased (p < 0.05) in the LP group compared with the NP group. However, there were no significant differences (p > 0.05) during the protein realimentation phase and the overall experiment. Similarly, piglets in the LP group showed a significantly decreased body protein content (p < 0.05) at day 14, but not (p > 0.05) at the end of the experiment. The relative abundance of Parabacteroides, Butyricicoccus, Olsenella, Succinivibrio and Pseudoramibacter were significantly increased (p < 0.05), while the relative abundance of Alloprevotella and Faecalicoccus were significantly decreased (p < 0.05) in the LP group at day 14. At the end of the experiment, the piglets in the LP group showed a higher (p < 0.05) colonic relative abundances of Parabacteroides, unidentified Christensenellaceae and Caproiciproducens, and a lower (p < 0.05) relative abundance of unidentified Prevotellaceae, Haemophilus, Marvinbryantia, Faecalibaculum, Neisseria and Dubosiella than those in the NP group. Metabolomics analyses indicated that tryptophan metabolism and vitamin metabolism were enriched in the LP group at day 14, and glycerophospholipid metabolism and fatty acid esters of hydroxy fatty acid metabolism were enriched at the end of the experiment. Moreover, Spearman's correlation analysis demonstrated that the microbial composition was highly correlated with changes in colonic metabolites. Collectively, these results indicated that protein restriction and subsequent realimentation lead to compensatory growth and compensatory protein deposition in piglets and contribute to animal intestinal health by altering the gut microbiota and its metabolites.

Effect of dietary arginine-to-lysine ratio in lactation on biochemical indices and performance of lactating sows.

The present study investigated the effect of optimizing the total dietary arginine (Arg)-to-lysine (Lys) ratios on the metabolism of lactating sows and piglet performance by supplementation with l- Arg during lactation. A total of 200 multiparous sows (three to six parities, Yorkshire × Landrace) were selected and randomly and equally assigned to five groups in lactation, and finally, 36, 34, 35, 36, and 33 dams completed the study in the dietary treatments, respectively, where the diets consisted of five step-up Arg-to-Lys ratios (0.9, 1.0, 1.1, 1.2, and 1.3) by the addition of 0%, 0.10%, 0.20%, 0.30%, and 0.40% Arg. The diets contained 3.37 to 3.38 Mcal of digestible energy/kg energy, 17.73% to 17.75% crude protein, and 0.98% to 1.01% Lys and were fed ad libitum during lactation. The performance of sows and suckling piglets was measured, and plasma and milk samples were collected for analysis. The feed intake of sows as well as litter weight gain during lactation increased linearly (P ≤ 0.05), while maternal backfat and milk composition were not affected (P > 0.05) as the dietary Arg-to-Lys ratios increased. Analyzed plasma biochemical indices, including concentrations of free Arg, Orn, and Glu, and prolactin, insulin, and follicle-stimulating hormone, responded linearly (P ≤ 0.05) to increases in dietary Arg-to-Lys ratios. The dietary Arg-to-Lys ratios of 1.01 and 1.02 were optimal for maternal feed intake and litter weight gain, based on broken-line models. Collectively, the results of this study indicate that increasing total dietary Arg-to-Lys ratios in lactation was beneficial for the performance of lactating sows and suckling piglets, and dietary Arg-to-Lys ratios of 1.01 and 1.02 were optimal, from regression analyses, for the practical feeding of lactating sows.