PARTNER FEATURE ▶▶▶


physical effects on peristalsis and minimising the incidence of constipation, which is highly relevant for a smooth farrowing process, and its fermentable parts selectively increase


Table 1 – Average litter data comparing the periods without and with inclusion of eubiotic lignocellulose.


Total piglets born, n Still born, %


Under-weight, % Abnormality, %


Four months before eubiotic lignocellulose* supplementation No heat stress 4,358 4.6 6.6 1.5


Pre-weaning mortality, % 14.1 * OptiCell, Agromed.


Four months with eubiotic


lignocellulose* supplementation Heat stress period 4,334 4.0 4.5 0.9


11.3


Figure 2 - Course of monthly proportion of under-weight piglets without and with inclusion of eubiotic lignocellulose*. The onset of the heat stress period and the start of supplementing the additive is marked with the arrow.


1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0 7.0 8.0


0.0 Jan * OptiCell, Agromed. Feb March April May June July August 6.8 7.2 6.6 5.9 5.8 5.4 3.6 3.3


metabolites such as lactic acid and butyric acid. These limit pathogens and proteolytic bacteria and decrease production of ammonia. The fermentation metabolites provide continu- ously additional energy, avoiding glycaemic stress. These health-related effects are of high importance in supporting sows in periods of metabolic stress. With respect to feed for heat-stressed animals, an intended fermentation process in the hindgut seems to be, at a first glance, another contradiction: fermentation is a highly exo- thermic biologic process, meaning that the degradation of the fermentable fibre content produces additional heat, which certainly is counterproductive in avoiding thermal stressors. Nevertheless, the negative impact of the fermenta- tion-related heat production is negligible compared to the positive effects of lignocellulose on gut functions, such as im- proved gut motility, increased villus height, optimised gut in- tegrity and additional energy supply out of hindgut fermenta- tion – this phenomenon is similar to another very well-known counterstrategy against heat stress: panting. The heat pro- duced by muscle contractions of an increased respiratory rate is lower than the amount of dissipated heat. Proof of a posi- tive net effect due to a partly fermentable lignocellulose supplementation in heat-stressed sows is given below.


Figure 3 - Course of monthly pre-weaning mortality without and with inclusion of eubiotic lignocellulose*. The onset of the heat stress period and the start of supplementing the additive is marked with the arrow.


2.0 4.0 6.0 8.0 10.0 12.0 14.0 16.0


0.0 Jan * OptiCell, Agromed. Feb March April May June July August 14.6 13.6 14.1 13.9 12.6 10.0 8.8 13.8


Effects of eubiotic lignocellulose in practice In a commercial sow farm in South Korea, the effect of such a eubiotic lignocellulose (OptiCell; Agromed Austria) was test- ed in 500 sows under field conditions. Parameters such as number of born piglets, pre-weaning mortality and number of piglets with underweight or abnormalities were compared over a four-month period without followed by four months with inclusion of eubiotic lignocellulose at a dosage of 1.0% from two weeks before farrowing until weaning. The inclu- sion of eubiotic lignocellulose started at the beginning of May, simultaneously with the onset of a heat wave. Table 1 indicates the over-compensatory effects of eubiotic lignocellulose: despite heat stress, performance parameters were improved compared to the thermo-neutral period due to the inclusion of eubiotic lignocellulose. This is also illustrat- ed in Figures 2 and 3 showing the monthly proportions of un- derweight piglets and pre-weaning mortality across the study period. Both parameters are clearly improved with eu- biotic lignocellulose supplementation despite the onset of the heat stress period. With respect to the gilts, which are the future of the farm, it may be concluded that any condition that limits oxidative stress during a heat stress period helps the gilts improve fu- ture gestation with a decrease of ovarian heterogeneity. Eubiotic lignocellulose may kill two birds with one stone: it delivers an adequate fibre supply to support the microbiota for beneficial fermentation and avoids excessive soluble fibre.


References available on request. 24 ▶PIG PROGRESS | Volume 36, No. 7, 2020


Monthly % pre-weaning mortallity


Monthly % under-weight piglets


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