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Sow prolificacy has increased significantly in recent years, and therefore the litter inhomogeneity and the number of low birthweight piglets. It has been shown that low birthweight piglets grow slower than normal birthweight littermates. These piglets, in particular males, have impaired organ development, increases prevalence of disease and higher mortality. In suckling and weaning piglets, glutamine supplementation has been associated with improved growth and intestinal development.
Methods: This study was designed to examine the effects of oral glutamine supplementation on growth and small intestinal parameters in low birthweight and normal birthweight suckling piglets. At birth (day 0), a total of 72 low birthweight (1.10 ± 0.06 kg) and 72 normal birthweight (1.51 ± 0.06) male piglets were selected. At day 1, litters were standardized to 12 piglets, and experimental piglets were supplemented daily with either glutamine (1 g/kg body weight) or isonitrogenous amounts of alanine as control (1.22 g/kg body weight) until day 12. Creep feed was offered from day 14 onward. Subgroups of piglets were euthanized at days 5, 12, and 26 for the analyses of jejunal morphometry, cellular proliferation, glutathione concentration and transcript abundance of tight junction proteins.
Results: From age day 11 to 21, glutamine-supplemented low birthweight piglets were heavier than alanine-supplemented low birthweight littermates, while normal birthweight piglets were heavier until age day 26 compared to low birthweight littermates. Villus height was higher in glutamine-supplemented low birthweight piglets compared to alanine-supplemented low birthweight piglets on age day 12. Sporadic differences among supplementation and birthweight groups were detected for jejunal cellular proliferation, cellular population and glutathione concentration, whereas age was the most dominant factor.
Conclusion: Glutamine supplementation improves growth of low birthweight piglets compared to alanine-supplemented low birthweight piglets beyond the termination of glutamine supplementation, but this was not associated with consistent effects on selected parameters of jejunal development.
Schregel J, Schulze Holthausen J, Sciascia QL, Görs S, Li Z, Tuchscherer A, Albrecht E, Zentek J, Metges CC. Acute and persistent effects of oral glutamine supplementation on growth, cellular proliferation, and tight junction protein transcript abundance in jejunal tissue of low and normal birthweight pre-weaning piglets. Plos one. 2024; 19(1): e0296427. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0296427