A biphasic feeding regimen exerts an improvement effect on feed efficiency of pigs. While gut microbiome and metabolome are known to affect the host phenotype, so far the effects of reduced feeding frequency on fecal microbiota and their metabolism in pigs remain unclear. Here, the combination of 16S rRNA sequencing technique as well as untargeted and targeted metabolome analyses was adopted to investigate the fecal microbiome and metabolome of growing–finishing pigs in response to a biphasic feeding [two meals per day (M2)] pattern. Sixty crossbred barrows were randomly assigned into two groups with 10 replicates (three pigs/pen), namely, the free-access feeding group (FA) and the M2 group. Pigs in the FA group were fed free access while those in the M2 group were fed ad libitum twice daily for 1 h at 8:00 and 18:00. Results showed that pigs fed biphasically exhibited increased feed efficiency compared to FA pigs. The Shannon and Simpson indexes were significantly increased by reducing the feeding frequency. In the biphasic-fed pigs, the relative abundances of Subdoligranulum, Roseburia, Mitsuokella, and Terrisporobacter were significantly increased while the relative abundances of unidentified_Spirochaetaceae, Methanobrevibacter, unidentified_Bacteroidales, Alloprevotella, Parabacteroides, and Bacteroides were significantly decreased compared to FA pigs. Partial least-square discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) analysis revealed an obvious variation between the FA and M2 groups; the differential features were mainly involved in arginine, proline, glycine, serine, threonine, and tryptophan metabolism as well as primary bile acid (BA) biosynthesis. In addition, the changes in the microbial genera were correlated with the differential fecal metabolites. A biphasic feeding regimen significantly increased the abundances of primary BAs and secondary BAs in feces of pigs, and the differentially enriched BAs were positively correlated with some specific genera. Taken together, these results suggest that the improvement effect of a reduced feeding frequency on feed efficiency of pigs might be associated with the altered fecal microbial composition and fecal metabolite profile in particular the enlarged stool BA pool.

This study aimed to investigate the effects of maternal lipopolysaccharide (LPS) challenge and dietary fat sources on colostrum quality and inflammatory response in sows. Sixty Landrace × Yorkshire sows were randomly assigned to three dietary treatments supplemented with 3% soybean oil (SO), 3% coconut oil (CO) or 3% fish oil (FO), respectively, from Day 90 of gestation until parturition. On Day 112 of gestation, half the sows from each dietary treatment were challenged with LPS (10 μg/kg BW) or saline. The results showed that maternal LPS challenge decreased colostrum yield and dry matter content. A similar pattern of changes was observed for body weight gain and colostrum intake in piglets from LPS-challenged sows. Maternal LPS challenge increased the levels of tumor necrosis factor α (TNFα), interleukin 1β (IL1β) and IL6 in colostum, and the mRNA abundance of IL6, IL1β and TNFα and the phosphorylation level of p65 in mammary glands. However, the responses of these variables to LPS treatment were lower in sows fed a FO diet. In conclusion, maternal immune challenge reduced the growth performance of piglets by decreasing colostrum yield and intake by piglets, and dietary supplementation with FO in sows attenuates the LPS-induced inflammatory response in mammary glands.

The construction of high-speed rail engineering brings not only the convenience of lifestyle, but also accelerates the flow of talents, capital and other resource elements, thus promoting the improvement of corporate performance. This paper takes the four vertical and four horizontal high-speed railway lines constructed in 2009-2014 as a quasi-natural experiment, adopts the double difference model, and introduces enterprise innovation management as an intermediary variable to examine and evaluate the economic effects brought by high-speed rail engineering construction to enterprises from a microscopic point of view. The results show that the construction of high-speed rail projects mainly improves the management performance of enterprises by promoting the flow of talents and stimulating the innovation management of enterprises. The conclusions of this paper help to deepen the analysis of the economic effects of high-speed rail construction, and provide a reference for the country to further accelerate the construction of high-speed rail and promote the regional economic development with the help of high-speed rail construction.