Functional Molecules of Intestinal Mucosal Products and Peptonesin Animal Nutrition and Health.

Abstract

There is growing interest in the use of intestinal mucosal products and peptones (partial protein hydrolysates)to enhance the food intake, growth, development,and healthof animals. The mucosa of the small intestine consists of the epithelium, the lamina propria, and the muscularis mucosa. The diverse population of cells (epithelial, immune, endocrine, neuronal, vascular, and elastic cells) in the intestinal mucosa contains not only high-quality food protein (e.g., collagen) but also a wide array of low-, medium-, and high-molecular-weight functional molecules with enormous nutritional, physiological, and immunological importance. Available evidence shows that intestinal mucosal products and peptonesprovide functional substances, including growth factors, enzymes, hormones, large peptides, small peptides, antimicrobials, cytokines, bioamines, regulators of nutrient metabolism, unique amino acids (e.g., taurineand 4-hydroxyproline), and other bioactive substances (e.g., creatine and glutathione). Therefore, dietary supplementation with intestinalmucosal products and peptonescan cost-effectively improve feed intake, immunity, health (the intestine and the whole body), well-being, wound healing, growth performance, andfeed efficiency in livestock, poultry, fish, and crustaceans. In feeding practices, an inclusion level of an intestinal mucosal product or a mucosalpeptone productat up to 5% (as-fed basis) is appropriate in the diets of these animals, as well as companion and zoo animals.