Abstract
Diet has been implicated as a major factor impacting clinical disease expression of swine dysentery and Brachyspira hyodysenteriae colonization. However, the impact of diet on novel pathogenic strongly beta-hemolytic Brachyspira spp. including “B. hampsonii” has yet to be investigated. In recent years, distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS), a source of insoluble dietary fiber, has been increasingly included in diets of swine. A randomized complete block experiment was used to examine the effect of increased dietary fiber through the feeding of DDGS on the incidence of Brachyspira-associated colitis in pigs. One hundred 4-week-old pigs were divided into five groups based upon inocula (negative control, Brachyspira intermedia, Brachyspira pilosicoli, B. hyodysenteriae or “B. hampsonii”) and fed one of two diets containing no (diet 1) or 30% (diet 2) DDGS. The average days to first positive culture and days post inoculation to the onset of clinical dysentery in the B. hyodysenteriae groups was significantly shorter for diet 2 when compared to diet 1 (P = 0.04 and P = 0.0009, respectively). A similar difference in the average days to first positive culture and days post inoculation to the onset of clinical dysentery was found when comparing the “B. hampsonii” groups. In this study, pigs receiving 30% DDGS shed on average one day prior to and developed swine dysentery nearly twice as fast as pigs receiving 0% DDGS. Accordingly, these data suggest a reduction in insoluble fiber through reducing or eliminating DDGS in swine rations should be considered an integral part of any effective disease elimination strategy for swine dysentery.
Highlights
Brachyspira spp. are a diverse group of Gram-negative, oxygen-tolerant, anaerobic spirochetes
Brachyspira pilosicoli is the only other Brachyspira spp. that has traditionally been recognized as a significant swine pathogen and is the causative agent of porcine colonic spirochetosis (PCS), a condition typically associated with mild colitis and reduced feed efficiency and rate of gain [2]
Little is published about the pathogenesis of swine dysentery (SD) associated with infection with either B. hyodysenteriae or ‘‘B. hampsonii’’; diet is considered to play a major role in disease expression [7]
Summary
Brachyspira spp. are a diverse group of Gram-negative, oxygen-tolerant, anaerobic spirochetes. Included in this genus is Brachyspira hyodysenteriae, a causative agent of swine dysentery (SD), which is an economically significant disease of growfinish swine characterized by severe diarrhea with blood and mucus [1]. Brachyspira pilosicoli is the only other Brachyspira spp. that has traditionally been recognized as a significant swine pathogen and is the causative agent of porcine colonic spirochetosis (PCS), a condition typically associated with mild colitis and reduced feed efficiency and rate of gain [2]. Clinical SD associated with infection with either B. hyodysenteriae or ‘‘B. hampsonii’’ is characterized by gross lesions limited to the large intestine that commonly include variable mucosal thickening, hemorrhage, fibrinonecrotic exudate, and abundant mucus. Crypt lumens are often distended with mucus, neutrophils are present in the lamina propria, and silver staining highlights spirochetes within crypt lumens and mucus-producing goblet cells
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