Maternal supplementation of seaweed-derived polysaccharides improves intestinal health and immune status of suckling piglets.
The experiment investigated the effect of maternal dietary supplementation of seaweed-derived polysaccharides (SDP) (-SDP v. +SDP, n   20) from day 83 of gestation until weaning (day 28) on selected sow faeces and piglet digesta microbiota populations, piglet small-intestinal morphology, and intestinal nutrient transporter and inflammatory cytokine gene expression at birth, 48 h after birth and weaning. The effect of maternal dietary treatment on the piglet gene expression profile of inflammatory cytokines in the colon following a lipopolysaccharide (LPS) challenge was also investigated. Dietary SDP reduced sow faecal Enterobacteriaceae gene numbers at parturition. Small-intestinal morphology, nutrient transporter and cytokine gene expression in newborn piglets did not differ between maternal dietary treatments (P > 0·10). At 48 h after birth, sodium-glucose-linked transporter 1 gene expression was down-regulated in the ileum of piglets suckling the SDP-supplemented sows compared with those suckling the basal sows (P = 0·050). There was a SDP × LPS challenge interaction on IL-1 and IL-6 gene expression in the colon of piglets (P < 0·05). The gene expression of IL-1 and IL-6 was down-regulated in the LPS-challenged colon of piglets suckling the SDP sows compared with those suckling the basal sows (P < 0·05). However, there was no difference in IL-1 and IL-6 gene expression in the unchallenged colon between treatment groups. At weaning, piglets suckling the SDP-supplemented sows had increased villus height in the jejunum and ileum compared with those suckling the basal-fed sows (P < 0·05). In conclusion, maternal dietary SDP supplementation enhanced the immune response of suckling piglets and improved gut morphology, making them more immune competent to deal with post-weaning adversities.
School of Agriculture and Food Science , University College Dublin , Belfield , Dublin 4 , Republic of Ireland.
G
G
Heim
School of Agriculture and Food Science , University College Dublin , Belfield , Dublin 4 , Republic of Ireland.
J V
JV
O'Doherty
School of Veterinary Medicine , University College Dublin , Belfield , Dublin 4 , Republic of Ireland.
C J
CJ
O'Shea
School of Agriculture and Food Science , University College Dublin , Belfield , Dublin 4 , Republic of Ireland.
D N
DN
Doyle
School of Agriculture and Food Science , University College Dublin , Belfield , Dublin 4 , Republic of Ireland.
A M
AM
Egan
School of Veterinary Medicine , University College Dublin , Belfield , Dublin 4 , Republic of Ireland.
K
K
Thornton
School of Veterinary Medicine , University College Dublin , Belfield , Dublin 4 , Republic of Ireland.
T
T
Sweeney
BW, body weight; CD, crypt depth; Ct, cycle threshold; Cytokines; FABP2, fatty acid binding protein 2; FOXP3, forkhead box P3; GCN, gene copy number; GIT, gastrointestinal tract; GLUT1, glucose transporter 1; HMBS, hydroxymethyl-bilane synthase; IFN-γ, interferon γ; Intestinal morphology; LPS, lipopolysaccharide; Microbiota; PEPT1, peptide transporter 1; PPIA, peptidylprolylisomerase A; Piglets; RT-qPCR, real-time PCR; SDP, seaweed-derived polysaccharide; SGLT1, sodium–glucose-linked transporter 1; Seaweed-derived polysaccharides; TGF-β1, transforming growth factor β1; VH, villus height; cDNA, complementary DNA