Work

Selection of an amino acid-deficient or -enriched diet by piglets under different sanitary conditions

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: • We studied choice-feeding of an amino acid-enriched vs -deficient diet in piglets. • Piglets were kept in low or high sanitary conditions after weaning. • Low sanitary conditions reduced feed intake, growth and feed efficiency and altered immune status. • Piglets generally selected more of the deficient diet than of the enriched diet. • High sanitary condition increased, but low sanitary condition reduced piglets’ selection of the enriched diet with time. Sub-optimal sanitary conditions resulting from poor hygiene practices alter amino acid ( AA ) metabolism of pigs, thereby changing their quantitative requirements. Pigs can select a diet that meets their AA requirements over an AA-deficient one when given the choice, suggesting potential for self-supplementation of AA in conditions that affect AA requirements. The present study investigated whether the self-supplementation of AA to compensate for the provision of an AA-deficient diet in a choice-feeding setting differs for piglets kept under high or low sanitary conditions. To this end, an experiment (2 × 2 factorial design) was performed with 60 weaned female piglets (TN70 × Tempo) (two piglets per pen). Piglets were kept under high ( HSC ) or low ( LSC ) sanitary conditions and were offered either a diet deficient in eight indispensable AA ( IAA ) ( LP − ) (No choice) or the choice between the LP − and a diet enriched with eight IAA ( LP + ) (Choice) for 19 days. Average daily feed intake ( ADFI ) and average daily gain ( ADG ) were recorded, and blood samples were taken to determine immune parameters. Piglets under LSC had 22 and 38% higher blood leukocyte and monocyte counts ( P < 0.01 for both), respectively, and a 129% higher haptoglobin concentration in serum ( P < 0.05) than HSC piglets. Moreover, neutrophil (+53%) and eosinophil (+43%) counts were increased in LSC pigs (both P < 0.001). Low sanitary conditions piglets had 31, 44, and 21% lower ADFI, ADG, and gain-to-feed ratio, respectively, than HSC piglets during the experiment ( P < 0.01), while no differences between No choice and Choice treatments on these parameters were observed. Both LSC and HSC choice piglets ingested more of the LP − than of the LP + diet ( P < 0.001). The course of the consumption of the LP + diet in time differed between the two sanitary conditions ( P < 0.01 for the interaction SC × Period): the percentage of LP + consumed out of the total feed intake from the start to the end of the experiment doubled (from 6.5 to 13.2%) for HSC piglets, while it decreased from 10.6 to 1.4% for LSC piglets. Low sanitary conditions, while decreasing performance and activating the immune system, did not increase the preference for an AA-enriched diet. Thus, offering piglets the choice to self-select between an AA-deficient diet and one enriched with AA above the assumed requirement did neither restore growth performance nor affect immune status when kept under low sanitary conditions.

Source: animal

DOI: 10.1016/j.animal.2025.101528

Authors: I. Minussi, A.J.M. Jansman, J.E. Bolhuis, W.J.J. Gerrits

Institution: Wageningen University & Research

Language: English

Topic: Animal Nutrition and Physiology

Subfield: Animal Science and Zoology

Field: Agricultural and Biological Sciences

Domain: Life Sciences

SDGs: Zero hunger, Good health and well-being

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $2,000