Influence of dietary carbohydrate source and high fat on reproductive tract characteristics of prepubertal female pigs

Abstract

The objective was to assess reproductive tract characteristics of prepubertal female pigs receiving diets that differed in carbohydrate (CHO) source. For 8 weeks, pigs (28d‐old) were fed either Control or high‐fat (HF) diets. HF diets contained either complex (Corn) or simple (Glucose or Fructose) CHO. Control pigs were pair‐fed with HF pigs resulting in similar final body weight across treatments (P=0.81). Ultrasound backfat depth (indicative of body adiposity) was 84% higher (P<0.001) in HF, and simple CHO diets tended to increase backfat (P=0.11). Pigs receiving HF diets have heavier (P=0.08) ovaries containing more antral follicles compared to Control. Further, simple CHO diets resulted in heavier uteri and ovaries and more antral follicles (P<0.01) compared to Control or complex CHO. HOMA‐B was negatively correlated (P=0.05) with ovarian weight and tended (P=0.10) to be negatively correlated with total tract weight. Total tract weight was positively correlated (P=0.07) with fasting glucose levels. Thus, observed reproductive differences among treatments appear to be related to metabolic status. Greater tissue weights and antral follicle numbers indicate that pigs receiving simple CHO diets may have been maturing more quickly from a reproductive standpoint, and would have likely ovulated before their counterparts. College of Agriculture and Life Sciences