Successful weaning starts with a healthy gut
A lot of ink has been spilled on how the pre- and postweaning period is determining the future health and performance of piglets. This phase, often home to many challenges and diseases and first use of antimicrobials need our full nutritional attention and best management practices if we want to further reduce antimicrobial use and increase sustainability.
BY BART MATTON, PRODUCT MANAGER PIGS, NUSCIENCE N
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0 No stress *significant difference, P < 0.05 12 Stress
eonatal piglets face many challenges as they do not get sufficient prenatal maternal immunity and have a limited energy supply in the body. To over- come this hiccup, Mother Nature provides the new- born piglet with a high permeable epithelium enabling macro- molecular passage of immunoglobulins and vitamins. The effective gut closure normally happens within 24hrs after birth and is modulated by the colostrum supplied by the sow. The colostrum has several functions such as maturing and modu- lating the intestinal tract and its microbiome by specific prebi- otic compounds and other bioactive substances. After gut clo- sure the important function of absorbing nutrients and keeping out pathogens can start. The gut barrier development however not only includes the epithelial barrier, transport
Figure 1 - Gut barrier function. measured as TEER (TransEpithelial Electrical Resistance) after 4 hours on a Caco2 cell line with or without stressor. (Relative value compared to T0h = 100%)
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Control START+
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functions and immune system maturation, but it also involves the development and the functioning of the enteric nervous system (ENS). The ENS undergoes several important develop- mental changes in early life including the synthesis of neuro- chemicals and synapse formation. It functions separately from the central nervous system however Moeser et al., indi- cated that the association between the ENS and the higher centres also plays a key role in animal well-being, health, structure and function of the GIT.
Neonatal gut development The window of opportunity to develop the gut barrier function lasts for several weeks after weaning and coincides with the normal weaning age in nature. However, modern weaning happens much earlier and compromises this development. In addition to this, weaning piglets are stressed around this phase: change from milk to solid feed, new littermates, new environment are to name a few. These stressors play an impor- tant role in the gut barrier functioning. Stress contributes to higher permeability of the epithelium and leads to the so called ‘leaky gut’. Translocation of pathogens consequently can cause intestinal disorders and the need for medical inter- vention. The leaky gut syndrome is a very important contrib- utor to post weaning diarrhoea and it takes several weeks be- fore a compromised gut barrier is restored in its original function. However, by applying appropriate early life interven- tions we can steer neonatal gut development, reduce the risk of pathogen translocation and overcome gastro-intestinal dis- orders such as post-weaning diarrhoea without the use of ther- apeutic ZnO and with no or very limited antibiotic use.
Farrowing house interventions Successful weaning starts prenatal by proper sow feeding to ensure a smooth farrowing process and giving birth to vital piglets. These piglets will locate the udder more rapidly al- lowing them to take in colostrum sooner and in higher quan- tity. In addition, last-born piglets, often less vital piglets, are condemned to the rear teats producing less colostrum and milk. Management strategies such as split suckling can help the intake of colostrum by the smaller, more vulnerable pig- lets. Colostrum plays an important role in the gut closure pro- cess, protecting the piglet from pathogen translocation. Be- sides good colostrum management, training the piglet to eat
▶ WEANING | JUNE 2020
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PHOTO: DANIEL WENZEL
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