Blidingia sp. extracts improve intestinal health and reduce diarrhoea in weanling piglets

AbstractBlidingia sp. is a prominent fouling green macroalga and we previously found that extracts fromBlidingia sp. alleviated intestinal inflammation in mice challenged with lipopolysaccharides. However, whether these extracts are effective in weanling piglets remains unknown. In the present study,Blidingia sp. extracts were supplemented in the diet and their effects on growth performance, incidence of diarrhoea and intestinal function in weanling piglets were explored. The results showed that diets supplemented with 0.1% or 0.5%Blidingia sp. extract significantly increased average daily body weight gain and feed intake in weanling piglets. Meanwhile, piglets supplemented with 0.5%Blidingia sp. extract showed decreased incidence of diarrhoea as well as reduced fecal water and Na+ content. Furthermore, the diet supplemented with 0.5%Blidingia sp. extracts improved intestinal morphology, as indicated by the results of hematoxylin and eosin staining. Diet supplemented with 0.5%Blidingia sp. extracts also improved tight junction function, as indicated by increased expression ofOccludin, Claudin-1 and Zonula occludens-1, and alleviated the inflammatory response, as indicated by decreased tumor necrosis factor- α and interleukin-6 (IL6) contents and increased IL10 levels. Taken together, our results showed thatBlidingia sp. extracts had beneficial effects in weanling piglets and we suggest thatBlidingia sp. extracts could be potentially used as an additive for piglets.

Source: Journal of Animal Physiology and Animal Nutrition - May 19, 2023 Category: Zoology Authors: Zongling Wang, Boxin Zeng, Haoran Xue, Chunyan Liu, Wei Song Tags: ORIGINAL ARTICLE Source Type: research