Micelle silymarin supplementation to sows’ diet from day 109 of gestation to entire lactation period enhances reproductive performance and affects serum hormones and metabolites

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to explore the influences of varying doses of micelle silymarin (0, 0.05%, 0.1%, and 0.2%) supplementation on sows’ feed intake, milk yields, serum hormones, and litter growth using 40 multiparous sows (Landrace × Yorkshire, parity from 3-5) from the109 th prenatal day to the 21 st postnatal day. Each treatment included 10 sows and each sow was used as an experimental unit. On weaning day, litter weight and litter weight gain were linearly improved (P < 0.01, both), corresponding to the increasing dose of silymarin micelle in the diet. Also, litter weight, litter weight gain, and average daily gain (ADG) of piglets born to treated sows exceeded (P < 0.05) those of offspring from the control sows (0% micelle silymarin). Feed intake in week1, week2, and the entire lactation period were increased (linear, P < 0.01) as micelle silymarin dose increased. Body weight (BW) loss of sows during lactation was linearly reduced (P = 0.003) with the increasing amounts of micelle silymarin. Average daily milk yields during lactation were also linearly increased (P = 0.002) in treated sows, exceeding (P = 0.046) that of control sows. Also, uniform increases were observed (P = 0.037) in fat content in milk produced by treated sows on d 14 of lactation. Epinephrine concentrations and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) activity in sow serum on d 21 postpartum were linearly declined (P = 0.010) as micelle silymarin dose increased, and were both declined (P < 0.05) in treated sows compared with the control. In addition, treated sows’ serum had higher activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) at parturition and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), lower oxidized glutathione (GSSG) concentrations, and GSSG/GSH (glutathione) ratio (all, P < 0.01) on d 21 of lactation. Moreover, offspring from micelle silymarin-treated sows tended to (0.05 < P <0.1) have higher serum catalase (CAT) activity and total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC) concentrations. Taken together, the results showed that sows fed increasing levels of micelle silymarin from the109 th prenatal day to the 21 st postnatal day had an incremental dose-dependent effect on higher feed intake, diminished BW loss, greater milk yields, and greater litter weight at weaning, and 0.2% of micelle silymarin could be optimal to achieve the better effect.

Dietary Supplementation of Limosilactobacillus mucosae LM1 Enhances Immune Functions and Modulates Gut Microbiota Without Affecting the Growth Performance of Growing Pigs

“…In the current study, the oxidant status in the jejunal and ileal mucosa was analyzed using typical biomarkers, such as T-AOC and TBARS. T-AOC is a non-enzymatic antioxidant defense system that removes excess free radicals and prevents lipid peroxidation ( 16 ), while TBARS, a product of lipid peroxidation, reflects the degree of fat oxidation in cells as well as the damage to the cells ( 10 ). In this study, the MH-treated pigs exhibited a tendency to express reduced TBARS concentration in the ileal mucosa.…”

“…Ultimately, the fecal samples were ground and sieved through a 40-mesh screen, while the ground feed samples were passed through a 25-mesh screen. The consequent assays and the instruments used for measuring dry matter (DM), N, and gross energy (GE) of the samples (feed and fecal) were according to a previous study by Zhang et al ( 16 ). The apparent total tract digestibility (ATTD) of nutrients was calculated using the formula, ATTD (%) = [1 – {(Nf × Cr 2 O 3 d) / (Nd × Cr 2 O 3 f)}] × 100, where Nf and Nd represent the nutrient concentrations and Cr 2 O 3 f and Cr 2 O 3 d represent the chromium trioxide concentrations in feces and diet, respectively.…”

Silymarin Modulates Microbiota in the Gut to Improve the Health of Sow from Late Gestation to Lactation

“…In our previous study, dietary silymarin supplementation during the sow transition and lactation reduced oxidative stress, decreased TNF-α concentration in serum on the seventh day of lactation, and increased the colostrum yield of sows [ 3 ]. Sows fed micelle silymarin from the 109th prenatal day to the 21st postnatal day increased their feed intake and milk yields during lactation, along with increased sow antioxidant capacity [ 4 ]. It has been found in previous studies that the functional mechanism of silymarin includes anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidation, scavenging free radicals, regulating intracellular glutathione peroxidase content, stabilizing cell membrane, regulating cell permeability, and improving liver regeneration ability [ 5 , 6 , 7 ].…”

Supplementation of carbohydrate enzymes plus protease to the diet of finishing pigs containing 2 protein levels on the effects of growth performance, toxic gas emissions, meat quality, and colonic microbiota community

“…The 3-day feces within an individual pen were pooled equably and frozen at -20 ℃ for further analyses. The baking and grinding of feces followed our previous description [21]. Dry matter was assayed by baking the weighted diet and fecal at 105 ℃ overnight.…”