Rice bran oil supplementation protects swine weanlings against diarrhea and lipopolysaccharide challenge

Early weaned piglets suffer from oxidative stress and enteral infection,which usually results in gut microbial dysbiosis,serve diarrhea,and even death.Rice bran oil(RBO),a polyphenol-enriched by-product of rice processing,has been shown to have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties both in vivo and in vitro.Here,we ascertained the proper RBO supplementation level,and subsequently determined its effects on lipopolysaccharide(LPS)-induced intestinal dysfunction in weaned piglets.A total of 168 piglets were randomly allocated into four groups of seven replicates(42 piglets each group,(21±1)d of age,body weight(7.60±0.04)kg,and half males and half females)and were given basal diet(Ctrl)or basal diet supplemented with 0.01%(mass fraction)RBO(RBO1),0.02%RBO(RBO2),or 0.03%RBO(RBO3)for 21 d.Then,seven piglets from the Ctrl and the RBO were treated with LPS(100μg/kg body weight(BW))as LPS group and RBO+LPS group,respectively.Meanwhile,seven piglets from the Ctrl were treated with the saline vehicle(Ctrl group).Four hours later,all treated piglets were sacrificed for taking samples of plasma,jejunum tissues,and feces.The results showed that 0.02%was the optimal dose of dietary RBO supplementation based on diarrhea,average daily gain,and average daily feed intake indices in early weaning piglets.Furthermore,RBO protected piglets against LPS-induced jejunal epithelium damage,which was indicated by the increases in villus height,villus height/crypt depth ratio,and Claudin-1 levels,as well as a decreased level of jejunal epithelium apoptosis.RBO also improved the antioxidant ability of LPS-challenged piglets,which was indicated by the elevated concentrations of catalase and superoxide dismutase,and increased total antioxidant capacity,as well as the decreased concentrations of diamine oxidase and malondialdehyde in plasma.Meanwhile,RBO improved the immune function of LPS-challenged weaned piglets,which was indicated by elevated immunoglobulin A(IgA),IgM,β-defensin-1,and lysozyme levels in the plasma.In addition,RBO supplementation improved the LPS challenge-induced dysbiosis of gut microbiota.Particularly,the indices of antioxidant capacity,intestinal damage,and immunity were significantly associated with the RBO-regulated gut microbiota.These findings suggested that 0.02%RBO is a suitable dose to protect against LPS-induced intestinal damage,oxidative stress,and jejunal microbiota dysbiosis in early weaned piglets.

Plant-derived squalene supplementation improves growth performance and alleviates acute oxidative stress-induced growth retardation and intestinal damage in piglets

Piglets are particularly susceptible to oxidative stress,which causes inferior growth performance and intestinal damage.Squalene(SQ),a natural bioactive substance enriched in shark liver oil,shows excellent antioxidant properties and can currently be obtained at a low cost from deodorizer distillate during the production of plant oil.This study aimed to evaluate the effects of plant-derived SQ supplementation on the growth performance of piglets and explore the beneficial roles of SQ against oxidative stress and intestinal injury in diquat-challenged piglets.Forty piglets were randomly divided into five groups and fed a basal diet supplemented with SQ at 0,500,1000,or 2000 mg/kg for 5 weeks.Acute oxidative stress was induced in the piglets with diquat(10 mg/kg BW)at the fourth week of the experiment,followed by a 7-d recovery period.Results showed that before the diquat challenge,SQ supplementation significantly improved growth performance(average daily gain and feed conversion ratio)and serum antioxidant status,and after the diquat challenge,SQ supplementation significantly mitigated diquat-induced growth arrest,intestinal villous atrophy,intestinal epithelial cell apoptosis,intestinal hyperpermeability,and deficiency of intestinal epithelial tight junction proteins(zonula occludens-1,occludin,and claudin-3).Under oxidative stress induced by diquat,SQ supplementation consistently improved the antioxidant status of the small intestine,liver,and muscle.In vitro,SQ was shown to alleviate hydrogen peroxide(H2O2)-induced increase of the levels of intracellular reactive oxygen species and apoptosis of porcine intestinal epithelial cells.Taken together,SQ supplementation improves growth performance and effectively alleviates acute oxidative stress-induced growth retardation and intestinal injury via improving antioxidant capacity in piglets.Our findings may provide an efficient strategy for alleviating oxidative stress-induced inferior growth performance and intestinal damage in piglets.