Abstract
Weaning imposes simultaneous stress, resulting in reduced feed intake, and growth rate, and increased morbidity and mortality of weaned pigs. Weaning impairs the intestinal integrity, disturbs digestive and absorptive capacity, and increases the intestinal oxidative stress, and susceptibility of diseases in piglets. The improvement of intestinal development and health is critically important for enhancing nutrient digestibility capacity and disease resistance of weaned pigs, therefore, increasing their survival rate at this most vulnerable stage, and overall productive performance during later stages. A healthy gut may include but not limited several important features: a healthy proliferation of intestinal epithelial cells, an integrated gut barrier function, a preferable or balanced gut microbiota, and a well-developed intestinal mucosa immunity. Burgeoning evidence suggested nutritional intervention are one of promising measures to enhance intestinal health of weaned pigs, although the exact protective mechanisms may vary and are still not completely understood. Previous research indicated that functional amino acids, such as arginine, cysteine, glutamine, or glutamate, may enhance intestinal mucosa immunity (i.e., increased sIgA secretion), reduce oxidative damage, stimulate proliferation of enterocytes, and enhance gut barrier function (i.e., enhanced expression of tight junction protein) of weaned pigs. A number of feed additives are marketed to assist in boosting intestinal immunity and regulating gut microbiota, therefore, reducing the negative impacts of weaning, and other environmental challenges on piglets. The promising results have been demonstrated in antimicrobial peptides, clays, direct-fed microbials, micro-minerals, milk components, oligosaccharides, organic acids, phytochemicals, and many other feed additives. This review summarizes our current understanding of nutritional intervention on intestinal health and development of weaned pigs and the importance of mechanistic studies focusing on this research area.
Highlights
Weaning is the most challenging stage that has significant bearings on pig welfare and growth performance in swine industry
The manipulation of genetics, management, and health plays substantially important role in protecting animal health and promoting their production performance, in the current review, we only focus on nutritional interventions on intestinal health of weaned pigs
These results indicated that weaning influenced energy metabolism, cellular macromolecule organization and localization, and protein metabolism, thereby further impacted the proliferation of intestinal epithelial cells in weaned piglets [18]
Summary
Weaning is the most challenging stage that has significant bearings on pig welfare and growth performance in swine industry. In the U.S, antibiotics use in livestock industry is estimated to account for 71% of the nation’s annual antibiotic consumption [2] These practices contribute to the spread of antibiotic-resistant pathogens in both livestock and humans, rising a significant public health threat. Use of in-feed antibiotics for production purpose in livestock industry is completely banned in the U.S [3] starting in January 2017, which is remarkably increasing the challenge of keeping pigs healthy, especially in post-weaning period. Another urgent need in animal science society is to develop strategies to replace antibiotics for food-producing animals without hampering animal production. The manipulation of genetics, management, and health plays substantially important role in protecting animal health and promoting their production performance, in the current review, we only focus on nutritional interventions on intestinal health of weaned pigs
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