XII - 12th International Symposium - Digestive Physiology of Pigs

Digestive
Physiology
of Pigs
Drayton 2 , I. Medina 2 , J. Polo 1 , J. Crenshaw 1 , and J. Odle 2 ,
1 APC, Inc., Ankeny, IA, US, 2 North Carolina State University,
Raleigh, NC, US, 3 Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, US.
Absorption of energy and immunoglobulin (IgG) at birth from
colostrum may improve survival and immune-competency
of newborn piglets. Adequate intake of colostrum may be
difficult for piglets due to low birth weight, birth order, or
viability. This study was designed to evaluate orally fed
colostrum supplements with different energy sources and
IgG from porcine plasma on piglet serum IgG content and
absorption of IgG compared with pooled sow colostrum.
Ninety-six newborn piglets from 12 sows with an average
birth weight of 1288 g were used in the experiment. Eight
piglets were removed from each sow immediately at birth,
before suckling, and randomly allotted to receive either
pooled sow colostrum or one of 3 colostrum supplements
(A, B, and C) fed at 2 dosing schemes. Piglets received
their allotted treatment as either 1 – 30 mL dose at 0 h or 3 –
10 mL doses at 0, 2, and 4 h. Pigs received ad libitum water
at 2 h intervals after they had received their last treatment
dose. Twelve hours after first dose, piglets were weighed
and 4 mL of blood were collected. Plasma IgG content,
apparent efficiency of absorption, hematocrit, protein, and
glucose were determined. Birth weight and ending body
weight did not differ between treatments; however, pigs
fed sow colostrum lost more weight (−72 g) than pigs fed
colostrum supplements (−40 g; P < 0.001). No differences
in hematocrit or serum glucose were detected. Serum
protein was higher (P < 0.05) in piglets fed colostrum
supplements than in pigs fed sow colostrum. Serum IgG
content was not different between treatments. Apparent
efficiency of IgG absorption was greatest for sow colostrum
followed by colostrum supplements B, A, and C (28.5, 27.6,
25.5, and 24.7%, respectively). The single and multiple
dose regimens delivered comparable serum IgG, while the
single dose yielded better piglet hydration as noted by less
weight loss. Collectively, all colostrum supplements were
comparable in delivering absorbable IgG to the neonatal
piglet.
Key words: colostrum, piglet, immunoglobulin G
2036 Small intestinal development of very earlyweaned
piglets fed milk replacer. M. De Vos,* V.
Huygelen, S. Willemen, B. Tambuyzer, C. Casteleyn, S.
Van Cruchten, and C. Van Ginneken, University of Antwerp,
Antwerp, Belgium.
Within-litter birth weight variation usually has adverse effects
on profitability. Indeed, the lightest piglets are confronted
with a high mortality and impaired growth rate. Therefore,
artificially rearing might help saving these piglets and
assist catch up growth. However, the paucity in scientific
literature makes it difficult to assess the effect of motherless
rearing on crucial elements for optimal growth, such as the
small intestinal morphology and digestion capacity. In this
experiment, pairs (n = 28) of low birth weight (LBW; < 1
kg) and normal birth weight piglets were weaned at 3 d of
age and allotted to one of 5 treatment groups: (1) group
euthanized at d 3 of age (SOW3); (2) suckled piglets until
d 10 of age (SOW10); (3) suckled piglets until 28 d of age
XII INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON
DIGESTIVE PHYSIOLOGY OF PIGS
108
Session IV
(SOW28); (4) formula-fed piglets from d 3 until d 10 (FOR10);
(5) formula-fed piglets from d 3 until d 28 (FOR28). During
the first post-weaning week, artificially fed piglets showed
reduced average daily gain (ADG) compared with suckling
piglets (P < 0.01), being illustrative of a post-weaning
growth-check. During that period, the effects of artificial
rearing on small intestinal morphology were striking:
FOR10 piglets had lower villi (386 ± 3.4 vs. 489 ± 6.5 μm)
(P < 0.01), deeper crypts (119 ± 1.4 vs. 76.0 ± 0.69 μm) (P
< 0.01) and reduced enzyme activities (P < 0.05) compared
with SOW10 piglets. In contrast, formula feeding until d 28
increased ADG compared with being sow fed (P = 0.03).
FOR28 piglets had higher villi (496 ± 4.7 vs. 432 ± 4.8 μm)
and deeper crypts (135 ± 1.4 vs. 109 ± 1.2 μm) compared
with SOW28 piglets (P < 0.01). Besides that, FOR28 piglets
expressed higher relative maltase and sucrase activities (P
< 0.01). Despite the differences created in the first postweaning
week, artificially feeding until 28 d of age improved
piglets’ growth and gut architecture. In conclusion, when the
lightest piglets are reared on milk replacer, they catch up in
growth more easily than LBW suckling piglets. This effect
might be related to their elevated milk intake (measured at
d 5,9,16) and increased capacity to absorb nutrients.
Key words: sow milk, formula, birth weight
2037 half-life of porcine antibodies absorbed from
a colostrum supplement containing porcine immunoglobulins.
J. Polo* 1 , J. Campbell 1 , J. Crenshaw 1 , C. Rodríguez
2 , N. Pujol 3 , N. Navarro 3 , and J. Pujols 3 , 1 APC Inc.,
Ankeny, IA, US, 2 APC Europe, S.A., Granollers, Barcelona,
Spain, 3 CReSA, Bellatera, Barcelona, Spain.
Absorption of immunoglobulins (Ig) at birth from colostrum is
necessary for piglet survival. The objective was to evaluate
the half life of antibodies absorbed in the bloodstream of
newborn piglets orally fed a colostrum supplement (CS)
containing energy (fat and carbohydrates) and IgG from
porcine plasma. Viable piglets (n = 23; BW 900–1800 g)
from 6 sows were colostrum deprived, blood sampled, and
in 2 h of life randomly allocated to either group 1 (n = 9)
providing 30 mL of Ig-free milk replacer or group 2 (n =
14) receiving 30 mL of CS by oral gavage. Piglets were
transported to a BSL-3 facility at CRESA (Spain) and
fed Ig-free milk replacer every 3–4 h for 15 d. Survival,
weight, plasma IgG content by RID, and antibodies against
porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2), porcine parvovirus (PPV),
porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS),
mycoplasma hyopneumoniae (Mhy) and swine influenza
virus (SIV) were determined by specific ELISA before
treatment administration, 24 h and weekly for 56 d. No
clinical symptoms were observed for either group. Mortality
index was lower (17 vs 38%; P = 0.0214) and BW higher
(17.7 vs 15.3 kg; P = 0.035) for pigs supplemented with CS.
At 24 h post administration, the CS group had a plasma
IgG mean of 7.6 ± 0.06 vs 0.14 ± 0.03 mg/mL for group
1. IgG levels in the CS group decayed until d 21 when
de novo synthesis of IgG was detected in 25% of piglets.
Half life of antibody concentration (HLAC) by RID was
6.2 d. In the CS group, high efficiency of PCV2 and PPV
antibody transference was observed. For PCV-2 all animals
remained positive by d 56 and the calculated HLAC was