Xylo-oligosaccharides improve the adverse effects of plant-based proteins on weaned piglet health by maintaining the intestinal barrier and inhibiting harmful bacterial growth

Qibing Wang; Yang Zhao; Lei Guo; Xiangyuan Ma; Yi Yang; Yong Zhuo; Xuemei Jiang; Lun Hua; Lianqiang Che; Shengyu Xu; Bin Feng; Zhengfeng Fang; Jian Li; Yan Lin; De Wu

doi:10.3389/fmicb.2023.1189434

Xylo-oligosaccharides improve the adverse effects of plant-based proteins on weaned piglet health by maintaining the intestinal barrier and inhibiting harmful bacterial growth

Front Microbiol. 2023 May 25:14:1189434. doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2023.1189434. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Qibing Wang^#¹, Yang Zhao^#¹, Lei Guo^#¹, Xiangyuan Ma¹, Yi Yang¹, Yong Zhuo¹, Xuemei Jiang¹, Lun Hua¹, Lianqiang Che¹, Shengyu Xu¹, Bin Feng¹, Zhengfeng Fang¹, Jian Li¹, Yan Lin¹, De Wu^#¹

Affiliation

¹ Animal Disease-Resistance Nutrition, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Animal Nutrition Institute, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, Sichuan, China.

^# Contributed equally.

Abstract

Introduction: Piglets are more susceptible to weaning stress syndrome when fed high levels of plant-based proteins that contain abundant food antigens and anti-nutritional factors. Xylo-oligosaccharides (XOS) are a potential prebiotic that may improve the tolerance of weaned piglets to plant-based proteins. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of XOS supplementation in high and low plant-based protein diets on growth performance, gut morphology, short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) production, and gut microbiota of weaned piglets.

Methods: A total of 128 weanling piglets with an average body weight (BW) of 7.63 ± 0.45 kg were randomly allocated to one of the four dietary treatments in a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement, with two levels of plant-based proteins (d 1-14: 68.3 or 81.33%, d 15-28: 81.27 or 100%) and XOS complex (0 or 0.43%) over a 28-day trial.

Results: The growth performance of piglets did not differ significantly among groups (P > 0.05). However, the diarrhea index of weaned piglets fed a high plant-based protein diet (HP) was significantly higher than that of those fed a low plant-based protein diet (LP) at days 1-14 and throughout the experimental period (P < 0.05). XOS treatment tended to reduce the diarrhea index at days 1-14 (P = 0.062) and during the whole experiment period (P = 0.083). However, it significantly increased the digestibility of organic matter at days 15-28 (P < 0.05). Moreover, dietary XOS supplementation increased ileal mucosa mRNA expression of occludin and ZO-1 (P < 0.05). Furthermore, the concentration of butyric acid (BA) in the cecal contents and in the concentrations of BA and valeric acid (VA) in colon contents were significantly elevated in the XOS groups (P < 0.05). Additionally, XOS optimized the gut flora by lowering the number of pathogenic bacteria such as p_Campylobacterota, thereby stabilizing the gut ecosystem.

Discussion: In conclusion, the HP diet aggravated diarrhea in weaned piglets while the XOS diet alleviated it by improving nutrient digestibility, protecting intestinal morphology, and optimizing the gut flora.

Keywords: gut microbiome; intestinal barrier; plant-based proteins; weaned piglets; xylo-oligosaccharide.

Grants and funding

This research was funded by the National Natural Science Fund (No. 32102589), the Key R&D Program of Sichuan Province (2020YFN0147), and the Yaan City-School Cooperation Project.