scholarly journals Alterations in intestinal microbiota composition coincide with impaired intestinal morphology and dysfunctional ileal immune response in growing-finishing pigs under constant chronic heat stress

2022 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yunxia Xiong ◽  
Shuting Cao ◽  
Hao Xiao ◽  
Qiwen Wu ◽  
Hongbo Yi ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Previous studies had shown that short-term acute heat stress (HS) affected the host’s metabolism and intestinal microbiota independent of feed intake (FI) reduction, and long-term calorie restriction caused intestinal morphological injuries and gut microbial alterations. However, research on the effects of constant chronic HS on intestinal microbial composition and the roles of FI reduction played in is limited. This study aimed to investigate the effects of 7-day constant chronic HS on the composition of intestinal microbes in growing-finishing pigs, and its relationship with pigs’ performance, intestinal morphology, and ileal immune response. Twenty-four growing-finishing pigs (Duroc × Large White × Landrace, 30 ± 1 kg body weight) were randomly assigned to three treatments (n = 8), 1) thermal neutral (TN) conditions (25 ± 1 °C) with ad libitum FI, 2) HS conditions (35 ± 1 °C) with ad libitum FI, 3) pair-fed (PF) with HS under TN conditions to discriminate the confounding effects of dissimilar FI, and the FI was the previous day’s average FI of HS. The small intestinal segments (duodenum, jejunum, and ileum) and feces were collected on d 8. Results Results indicated that HS drastically declined (P < 0.05) average daily gain (ADG) and average daily feed intake (ADFI) (about 61%) in comparison with TN, and caused hyperpyrexia, meanwhile PF caused hypothermia. Morphological observation by light and electron microscopes showed that both HS and PF treatment decreased (P < 0.05) the villus and microvillus height compared with TN. Additionally, HS increased (P < 0.05) protein expression of heat shock protein 70 in the duodenum, jejunum, and ileum. Furthermore, the expression of tight junction protein zonula occluden-1 (ZO-1) in the duodenum and ileum, and Occludin in the ileum were enhanced (P < 0.05) compared with TN and PF. Moreover, HS significantly enhanced (P < 0.05) the mRNA relative expression of inflammatory cytokines (TLR-2, TLR-4, and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), IL-6, IL-8, PG1–5, β-defensin 2 (pBD-2)), mucins (mucin-1 and mucin-2) and P65 protein level in the ileal mucosa tissue. Intestinal microbiota analysis by 16S rRNA sequencing showed lower (P < 0.10) α diversity in both HS and PF, and a separated cluster of β diversity among groups. Compared with TN, HS but not PF mainly reduced (FDR < 0.05) Bacteroidetes (phylum), Bacteroidia (class) and elevated the proportions of Proteobacteria (phylum, FDR < 0.05), Bacillales (order, FDR < 0.05), Planococcaceae (family, FDR < 0.05), Kurthia (genus, FDR < 0.05), Streptococcaceae (family, FDR < 0.10) and Streptococcus (genus, FDR < 0.10). Notably, Lactobacillales (order) was decreased (FDR < 0.05) by PF alone. Furthermore, the Spearman correlation analysis indicated that the microbes prevalent in HS were positively (P < 0.05) associated with intestinal morphological injuries indicators and ileal immune response parameters, and the microbes reduced in HS were negatively (P < 0.05) with the performance data. Conclusions Intestinal morphological injuries and ileal immune response caused by constant chronic HS independent of FI showed close connections with alterations in intestinal microbiota in growing-finishing pigs.

2019 ◽  
Vol 97 (Supplement_3) ◽  
pp. 283-284
Author(s):  
Li Wang ◽  
Yunxia Xiong ◽  
Hongbo Yi ◽  
Xiaolu Wen ◽  
Kaiguo Gao ◽  
...  

Abstract Heat stress can affect growth performance and some physiological metabolism in finishing pigs. In this study, we investigated the effects of intermittent heat stress and arginine on the growth performance, intestinal health and liver metabolism of finishing pigs. Forty-eight Landrace barrow pigs (about 70kg) were randomly assigned to 6 groups, each group 8 pigs. The pigs were treated as follows: (1) LR (fed ad libitum at 22°C), (2) HR (ad libitum fed at 35°C), (3) LL(at 22°C, but fed the amount consumed by those kept at 35°C), (4) LR+1% Arg, (5) HR+1%Arg, (6) LL+1%Arg. The temperature of HR and HR+1%Arg groups was controlled for cycles of 35 ± 2 ℃ for 12 hours, 22 ± 2 ℃ for the other 12 hours. The experiment lasted for 30 days. The results showed that the ADFI and ADG of pigs in LR group were much higher than those in HR group or LL group, the latter having the highest F:G (P &lt; 0.05). Jejunal HE staining results showed that heat stress decreased the villus height of jejunum and villus height to crypt depth ratio, adding 1% arginine can alleviate the damage by heat stress (P &lt; 0.05). Heat stress decreased the abundance of transcripts of tight junction protein ZO-1, occludin and mucin-2 in the mucosa of the jejunum (P &lt; 0.05). Moreover, dietary arginine supplementation increased occludin transcripts (P &lt; 0.05). The results of hepatic metabolomics showed that heat stress significantly affected the metabolism of carbohydrate, energy and protein of liver (P &lt; 0.05). In conclusion, these data indicated that intermittent heat stress has negatively influence on the intestinal health and liver metabolism of finishing pigs, and adding 1% arginine had a positive effect on intestinal mucosal morphology caused by heat stress.


1984 ◽  
Vol 64 (4) ◽  
pp. 1063-1066
Author(s):  
A. G. CASTELL

Increasing the level of wheat screenings (95% green foxtail seeds) from 0 to 25% in diets fed ad libitum over the period from 34 to 89 kg liveweight resulted in an increased daily feed intake (P < 0.05), reduced (P < 0.05) feed efficiency and apparent digestibility, but produced no consistent effects on growth rate or carcass composition. Key words: Growing pigs, green foxtail, Setaria viridis, carcass, digestibility


Animals ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 129 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jie Gao ◽  
Peige Yang ◽  
Yanjun Cui ◽  
Qingshi Meng ◽  
Yuejin Feng ◽  
...  

Heat stress (HS) negatively affects meat quality by affecting material and energy metabolism, and exploring the mechanism underlying the muscle response to chronic HS in finishing pigs is important for the global pork industry. This study investigated changes in the metabolic profiles of the longissimus dorsi (LD) muscle of finishing pigs under high temperature using ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with electrospray ionization quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-ESI-QTOF-MS) and multivariate data analysis (MDA). Castrated male DLY pigs (Duroc × Landrance × Yorkshire pigs, n = 24) from 8 litters were divided into three treatment groups: constant optimal ambient temperature at 22 °C and ad libitum feeding (CR, n = 8); constant high ambient temperature at 30 °C and ad libitum feeding (HS, n = 8); and constant optimal ambient temperature 22 °C and pair-feeding to the control pigs (PF, n = 8). The metabolic profile data from LD muscle samples were analyzed by MDA and external search engines. Nine differential metabolites (L-carnosine, acetylcholine, inosinic acid, L-carnitine, L-anserine, L-α-glycerylphosphorylcholine, acetylcarnitine, thiamine triphosphate, and adenosine thiamine diphosphate) were involved in antioxidant function, lipid metabolism, and cell signal transduction, which may decrease post mortem meat quality and play important roles in anti-HS. Four metabolites (L-carnosine, acetylcholine, inosinic acid, and L-carnitine) were verified, and it was indicated that the muscle L-carnitine content was significantly lower in HS than in CR (p < 0.01). The results show that constant HS affects the metabolites in the LD muscle and leads to coordinated changes in the endogenous antioxidant defense and meat quality of finishing pigs. These metabonomics results provide a basis for researching nutritional strategies to reduce the negative effects of heat stress on livestock and present new insights for further research.


Author(s):  
S.A. Chadd ◽  
D.J.A. Cole

There have been a number of reports that voluntary feed intake (VFI) of modern pig genotypes may be the limitation to their growth performance. It has been suggested that selection for leanness (Fowler et al. 1976) and breeding for faster growth may have reduced appetite.In addition there is only limited information about the effect on VFI, performance and carcass characteristics of pigs fed ad libitum to liveweights greater than 100kg. A study was therefore undertaken to compare VFI and energy intake of improved genotypes with predicted intakes based on earlier genotypes (ARC, 1981). The associated effects on performance and carcass characteristics at heavier slaughter weights were also studied.


Animals ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 359 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wei Fang ◽  
Xiaobin Wen ◽  
Qingshi Meng ◽  
Lei Liu ◽  
Jingjing Xie ◽  
...  

Heat stress influences lipid metabolism independently of nutrient intake. It is not well understood how cholesterol and bile acid (BA) metabolism are affected by heat stress. To investigate the alterations of cholesterol and bile acids when pigs are exposed to short term heat stress, 24 Large White pigs (63.2 ± 9.5 kg body weight, BW) were distributed into one of three environmental treatments: control conditions (CON, 23 °C with ad libitum intake; n = 8), heat stress conditions (HS, 33 °C with ad libitum intake; n = 8), or pair-fed conditions (PF, 23 °C with the same amount to the feed consumed by the HS; n = 8) for three days. Compared with CON pigs, HS pigs reduced the average daily feed intake and average daily gain by 55% and 124%, respectively, and significantly increased rectal temperatures by 0.9 °C and respiration rates more than three-fold. The serum total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, and triglycerides (TG) increased (p < 0.05), while hepatic TC, TG, and mRNA of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase were reduced on day 3. Furthermore, liver taurine-conjugated BAs (TCBAs), including taurolithocholic acid, taurochenodeoxycholic acid (TCDCA), tauroursodeoxycholic acid, taurohyodeoxycholic acid, and taurocholic acid were elevated in HS pigs compared to CON and PF pigs (p < 0.05), and the level of chenodeoxycholic acid was more significant in the PF group than in the CON and HS groups. The concentration of ursodeoxycholic acid in the serum was higher in HS pigs than CON and PF pigs (p < 0.05), and TCDCA was increased in HS pigs compared with PF pigs (p < 0.05). Altogether, short-term HS reduced hepatic cholesterol levels by decreasing cholesterol synthesis, promoting cholesterol to TCBAs conversion, and cholesterol release to serum in growing pigs. This independently reduced feed intake might serve as a mechanism to protect cells from damage during the early period.


2001 ◽  
Vol 86 (1) ◽  
pp. 63-70 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne Collin ◽  
Jacob van Milgen ◽  
Serge Dubois ◽  
Jean Noblet

To assess the acclimation of pigs to heat stress, the effects of high (33°C) or thermoneutral (23°C) constant temperatures on feeding behaviour and components of energy balance were studied in group-housed young pigs. Three groups of five pigs were used at each temperature. After 1 week of adaptation, voluntary feed intake (VFI) and heat production (HP) were recorded for thirteen consecutive days. Animals were fed ad libitum. Fasting HP was measured on the last day. Average initial body weights (BW) were 21·4 and 20·9 kg at 23 and 33°C respectively. Feeding behaviour was measured individually and rate of feed intake and characteristics of feeding behaviour were calculated. The O2 consumption, CO2 production and physical activity of the group were used to calculate total HP (HPtot) and its components, i.e. fasting HP (HPfas), HP due to physical activity (HPact) and thermic effect of feed (TEF). The BW gain and VFI were reduced by 37 and 30 % respectively at 33°C. The decrease in VFI corresponded to reduced consumption time (-34 %) and size of the meals (-32 %). Feeding behaviour was mostly diurnal (66 % of the VFI), and the rate of feed intake (28 g/min) was not affected by temperature. Daily HPtot, HPfas and TEF, expressed per kg metabolic weight (BW0·60), were significantly decreased at 33°C by 22, 18 and 35 % respectively, whereas HPact was not affected; TEF expressed per g feed was not affected (2 kJ/g). The decrease in HPtot at 33°C was caused by a reduction in TEF and HPfas (kJ/d per/kg BW0·60), which are both related to reduction in VFI.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jing Liu ◽  
Sydney N. Stewart ◽  
Kelsy Robinson ◽  
Qing Yang ◽  
Wentao Lyu ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Intestinal microbiota plays a key role in nutrient digestion and utilization with a profound impact on feed efficiency of livestock animals. However, the intestinal microbes that are critically involved in feed efficiency remain elusive. Methods To identify intestinal bacteria associated with residual feed intake (RFI) in chickens, male Cobb broiler chicks were individually housed from day 14 to day 35. Individual RFI values were calculated for 56 chickens. Luminal contents were collected from the ileum, cecum, and cloaca of each animal on day 35. Bacterial DNA was isolated and subjected to 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Intestinal microbiota was classified to the feature level using Deblur and QIIME 2. High and low RFI groups were formed by selecting 15 and 17 chickens with the most extreme RFI values for subsequent LEfSe comparison of the difference in the microbiota. Spearman correlation analysis was further performed to identify correlations between the intestinal microbiota composition and RFI. Results No significant difference in evenness, richness, and overall diversity of the microbiota in the ileum, cecum, or cloaca was observed between high and low RFI chickens. However, LEfSe analysis revealed a number of bacterial features being differentially enriched in either high or low RFI chickens. Spearman correlation analysis further identified many differentially enriched bacterial features to be significantly correlated with RFI (P < 0.05). Importantly, not all short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) producers showed a positive association with RFI. While two novel members of Oscillibacter and Butyricicoccus were more abundant in low-RFI, high-efficiency chickens, several other SCFA producers such as Subdoligranulum variabile and two related Peptostreptococcaceae members were negatively associated with feed efficiency. Moreover, a few closely-related Lachnospiraceae family members showed a positive correlation with feed efficiency, while others of the same family displayed an opposite relationship. Conclusions Our results highlight the complexity of the intestinal microbiota and a need to differentiate the bacteria to the species, subspecies, and even strain levels in order to reveal their true association with feed efficiency. Identification of RFI-associated bacteria provides important leads to manipulate the intestinal microbiota for improving production efficiency, profitability, and sustainability of poultry production.


2018 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-17 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zsolt Szendrő ◽  
Zoltán Papp ◽  
Károly Kustos

Thirty-six lactating New Zealand White rabbit does were divided into 6 groups according to ambient temperature and feed intake. The does were kept at 20 °C during pregnancy and at kindling, then they were put into climatic chambers at temperatures of 5, 15, 23 or 30 °C. One part of the does were fed ad libitum (5A, 15A, 23A and 30A), two other groups were housed at 15 °C, but they received the same amount of pellet as the does' intake at 23 °C or 30 °C (15/23R and 15/30R). The litter sizes were equalized to seven. The weight of does, milk production, feed intake and water intake were recorded daily. Heat stress reduced milk yield (148, 152, 150 and 106 g/day), feed intake (287, 279, 260 and 179 g/day) and water intake (497, 512, 526 and 428 g/day), but increased the water/feed ratio (1.73, 1.84, 2.02 and 2.39) in the groups of 5A, 15A, 23A and 30A, respectively. Body weight of does decreased at 23 °C and 30 °C by 5.6% and 8.5%, respectively, compared to 15 °C. Comparing the groups of rabbits kept at 23 °C and 30 °C fed ad libitum (23A and 30A) and the data obtained for groups of 15/23R and 15/30R it was observed that the milk yield decreased by 8.0% and 2.5%, water intake increased by 8.6 and 13.3%, and the feed/water ratio was higher by 0.18 and 0.18, respectively. The effect of heat stress was less significant on kits than on does. It can be concluded that the high ambient temperature mainly affected the milk production through the reduction of feed intake.


2020 ◽  
Vol 98 (Supplement_3) ◽  
pp. 118-118
Author(s):  
Edith J Mayorga ◽  
Erin A Horst ◽  
Brady M Goetz ◽  
Sonia Rodríguez-Jiménez ◽  
Megan A Abeyta ◽  
...  

Abstract Objectives were to determine the effects of mitoquinol (MitoQ) on performance, metabolism, and inflammation during acute heat stress (HS) in growing pigs. Crossbred barrows (n=32; 59±1 kg BW) where blocked by BW and randomly assigned to 1 of 4 therapeutic-environmental treatments: 1) thermoneutral (TN) control (n=8; TNCtl), 2) TN and MitoQ (n=8; TNMitoQ), 3) HS control (n=8; HSCtl), or 4) HS and MitoQ (n=8; HSMitoQ). The trial consisted of two experimental periods (P). During P1 (2d), pigs were fed ad libitum and housed in TN conditions (20.6±0.1°C). During P2 (24h), HSCtl and HSMitoQ pigs were exposed to continuous HS (35.2±0.03°C); while TNCtl and TNMitoQ remained in TN conditions. Mitoquinol was orally administered twice daily (0700 and 1800 h; 40 mg/d) during P1 and P2. Pigs exposed to HS had increased rectal temperature, skin temperature, and respiration rate (1.46°C, 6.79°C, and 101 bpm, respectively; P&lt; 0.01) compared to their TN counterparts. Acute HS markedly decreased feed intake (67%; P&lt; 0.01). Additionally, HS pigs lost BW compared to their TN counterparts (-4.7 vs. +1.6 kg, respectively; P&lt; 0.01); however, the reduction in BW was less severe in HSMitoQ compared to HSCtl pigs (-3.85 vs. -5.50 kg, respectively; P&lt; 0.01). Circulating glucose increased in HSMitoQ relative to HSCtl pigs (15%; P=0.04). Non-esterified fatty acid (NEFA) concentrations were increased in HS compared to TN pigs (P&lt; 0.01), although this difference was influenced by increased NEFA in HSCtl relative to HSMitoQ pigs (251 vs. 142 μEq/L; P&lt; 0.01). Insulin:feed intake tended to increase in HS relative to TN pigs (P=0.09). Overall, no differences in blood urea nitrogen or cell blood counts were observed across treatments (P &gt;0.10). In conclusion, acute HS exposure negatively altered animal performance and metabolism; however, administering MitoQ appeared to ameliorate the HS response.


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