increase in the Lactobacillus bacteria group and a decrease in Escherichia coli or total coliforms.
Organic acids Short- and medium-chain organic acids, such as citric, propi- onic, lactic or fumaric acids, have bacteriostatic and bacteri- cidal effects; therefore, they are used in high doses in piglet diets for feed preservation. Using organic acids in newly weaned piglets is related to a decrease in coliforms and an in- crease in Lactobacillus, and they impact the microbiota com- position from the stomach to the colon in a broader manner.
Prebiotics Prebiotics are fibres defined as selectively fermented dietary ingredients that allow specific changes both in the composi- tion and/or activity of the gut microbiota with a beneficial physiological effect on the host. Prebiotic inclusion in pig di- ets stimulates the proliferation and metabolic activity of ben- eficial microbes and contributes to a stable microbial ecosys- tem. It is reported that prebiotics increase the proportion of Lactobacillus and decrease the amount of potentially harmful groups such as Clostridium and Enterobacteriaceae on the intestinal microbiota of weaning piglets.
Probiotics Probiotics are live micro-organisms that can be used to pre- vent and treat microbial imbalance by altering gut microbi- ota populations. Lactic acid bacteria, such as Lactobacillus, Bifidobacterium, Enterococcus and Streptococcus, and yeasts from the genus Saccharomyces are the most frequently used micro-organisms. Feeding Lactobacillus derived from the pig intestine as probiotics reduces the abundance of
Enterobacteriaceae, including pathogenic E. coli, minimises incidence of diarrhoea, enhances immune response during infection and increases weight gain. Piglets suckling from probiotic-fed sows may be a promising development in probiotic application.
Fermentable carbohydrates Dietary carbohydrates, wheat starch and beet pulp can stimu- late microbial fermentation, increase beneficial Lactobacillus species in gut microbiota and promote a stable and healthy gut microbial ecosystem. Conventional pig diets are based on cereal grains that naturally contain fermentable carbohydrates, including resistant starch, β-glucans and hemicellulose. Com- plex diets that replace wheat with barley increase mucosal microbiota uniformity and piglet growth after weaning.
Concluding remarks The gut microbial ecosystem is essential for normal nutrition- al, physiological and immunological functions of the pig. Dis- turbance in the microbial ecosystem creates an opportunity for pathogenic organisms to colonise and cause disease. Management practices in intensive swine production such as early weaning and diet formulation unintentionally disturb the gut microbial ecosystem, predisposing piglets to disease. Weaning is a critical event in the intensive swine industry which leads to gut disorders, raising economic and public health concerns. Therefore, for better management of wean- ing transition, it is critical to apply some feed additives as a strategy to restore gut microbial balance. However, further re- search should be undertaken to better understand the suc- cession of events leading to gut microbial imbalance, as well as the relative involvement of influencing factors.
▶ ALL ABOUT FEED | Volume 30, No. 3, 2022 19
Weaned piglets on a transitional diet that is still provided in liquid form.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44
