Curcumin has improved effects on antioxidant capacity via multiple mechanisms. Intrauterine growth retardation (IUGR) has had adverse influences on human health. IUGR is always associated with elevated oxidative stress and deficiencies in antioxidant defense. Therefore, we chose IUGR piglets as a model to investigate the effects of IUGR on antioxidant capacity of newborn and weaned piglets and determine how these alterations were regulated after supplementation with curcumin in weaned IUGR piglets. In experiment 1, eight normal-birth-weight (NBW) and eight IUGR newborn piglets were selected to determine the effect of IUGR on the antioxidant capacity of neonatal piglets. In experiment 2, thirty-two weaned piglets from four experimental groups: NBW, NC (curcumin supplementation), IUGR, IC (curcumin supplementation) were selected. The results showed that both IUGR newborn and weaned piglets exhibited oxidative damage and lower antioxidant enzymes activities in the liver compared with the NBW piglets. Dietary curcumin supplementation increased body-weight gain, feed intake, activities of antioxidant enzymes, and the expressions of nuclear factor, erythroid 2-like 2 (Nrf2) and heme oxygenase-1 (Hmox1) proteins in the liver of weaned piglets with IUGR. In conclusion, IUGR decreased the antioxidant capacity of newborn and weaned piglets. Curcumin could efficiently improve the growth, increase hepatic antioxidant capacity, and upregulate Nrf2 and Hmox1 levels in the liver of IUGR weaned piglets.
Keywords: antioxidant capacity; curcumin; intrauterine growth retardation; liver; piglets.