Traditional Chinese Medicine Prescriptions Decrease Diarrhea Rate by Relieving Colonic Inflammation and Ameliorating Caecum Microbiota in Piglets

Abstract

Diarrhea is a leading cause of death in piglets. XiaoJianZhong (XJZ) and Jingsananli-sepsis (JSS) were two traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) prescriptions to prevent and treat intestinal diseases, including diarrhea and inflammatory disease. Here, we investigated the effects of XJZ and JSS on diarrhea rate, growth performance, colonic inflammation, and caecum microbiota in piglets. A total of 18 piglets were selected and randomly divided into three groups. Control group was supplied with basal diets, while TCM1 and TCM2 groups were, respectively, supplied with XJZ and JSS in basal diets. Decreased diarrhea rate, colonic or caecal pH, and elevated apparent nutrient digestibility were observed in both TCM groups. Meanwhile, both prescriptions alleviated colonic inflammation by decreasing mRNA expression of proinflammatory cytokines and suppressing the TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB signaling pathway. Additionally, TCM1 and TCM2 prescriptions ameliorated caecum microbiota composition and increased the abundance of beneficial bacteria, together with regulations on several genes that are responsible for signaling pathways involved in cancers and metabolic diseases. Importantly, both TCM1 and TCM2 significantly promoted the average daily gain (ADG) and reduced the feed : gain (F : G) ratio. In conclusion, both TCM prescriptions effectively decreased diarrhea rate and increased growth performance by elevating apparent nutrient digestibility and gut health, via relieving colonic inflammation and ameliorating gut microbiota composition of piglets.

Traditional Chinese medicine prescriptions (XJZ, JSS) ameliorate spleen inflammatory response and antioxidant capacity by synergistically regulating NF-κB and Nrf2 signaling pathways in piglets

“…Experimental groups included: (I) Control group (basal diet), (II) XJZ group (basal diet plus 10 g/kg XJZ prescription), or (III) JSS group (basal diet plus 3 g/kg JSS prescription). The doses for TCM groups (XJZ and JSS) were determined based on our preliminary tests and previous study (9). All raw materials for XJZ and JSS prescriptions were provided by The Spirit Jinyu Biological Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd (Huhhot, Inner Mongolia, China).…”

“…However, the mechanism is still not fully understood. Previous study showed that both XJZ and JSS could increase the growth performance and control diarrhea induced by weaning in piglets (9,12,13).…”

“…Many countries or regions, such as the United States, China, and European Union, have clearly stipulated that the use of antibiotics as feed additives is prohibited. Crucially, the antibiotics cannot fundamentally ameliorate the immune state of piglets, but affect the colonization and proliferation of normal or beneficial gut microflora (9). Therefore, it is imperative to find an alternative medicine with low toxicity, few side effects, and high efficiency.…”

Maternal Dietary Forsythia suspensa Extract Supplementation Induces Changes in Offspring Antioxidant Status, Inflammatory Responses, Intestinal Development, and Microbial Community of Sows

“…Butyrivibrio could ferment glucose to produce butyrate, which was beneficial for supplying energy for the gut cell and the growth of beneficial bacteria (31,72). The reason for the current findings might be that Chinese medicine could help decrease colonic or caecal pH levels, enhance the abundance of the beneficial microbial community, and colonic inflammation response via downregulating the TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB signaling pathway and reducing mRNA expression of some pro-inflammatory cytokines (73). The current findings indicated that the maternal FSE could influence the composition of the intestinal microbiota in sows while its mechanism still needed to be further investigated.…”

Effects of dietary supplement with a Chinese herbal mixture on growth performance, antioxidant capacity, and gut microbiota in weaned pigs

“…A traditional herbal medicine called “Tongxie Yaofang” containing paeoniae lactiflora has been widely used to treat diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome ( 50 ). A herbal medicine compound containing licorice extract reduced diarrhea rates and improved the nutrient apparent digestibility of piglets ( 51 ). These observations were consistent with our results in the present study.…”