Effects of Spray-Dried Porcine Plasma of Fecal Microbiota in Nursery Pigs

Abstract Text: Spray-dried porcine plasma (SDPP) has been considered as an alternative for in-feed antibiotics to improve growth performance of nursery pigs; however, the effects of SDPP on gut microbiota are mostly unknown. The objective of this study was to evaluate effects of feeding SDPP on gut microbial communities of nursery pigs using fecal microbiota as a proxy. A total of 96 weaned pigs (NE female × Danbred sire; age, 20 d; initial BW, 6.06 kg) were sorted by BW and sex and randomly assigned to 16 pens. Pen was randomly allotted to 1 of the 2 treatments: 1) control (no SDPP); and 2) control + SDPP (wk 1 to 2: with 5% SDPP; wk 3 to 4: with 2.5% SDPP). Fecal samples (1 pig / pen) were collected at the beginning (d 0) and weekly throughout a 4-wk study. Multiplex sequencing of the V3-region of the 16S rRNA gene was used to characterize the bacterial community structure of fecal samples in response to dietary treatment. Feeding SDPP altered microbial community structure at family, genus, and OTU levels; however, the shift of the microbes is greatly influenced by pig age. At the family level, Clostridiaceae increased (P < 0.001) on d 14, but was reduced (P < 0.05) on d 28 in SDPP-fed pigs compared to control pigs. Decreased Veillonellaceae (P < 0.05; d 7) and Lachnospiraceae (P = 0.001; overall) were observed in SDPP pigs compared to control pigs. Feeding SDPP increased (P < 0.05) lactic acid-producing bacteria (Lactobacillus delbrueckii, d 7) and cellulolytic bacteria (Ruminococcus albus, d 7; Clostridium thermocellum, d 7 and 14; and Clostridium saccharoperbutylacetonicum/beijerinckii, d 14; and Megasphaera elsdenii, d 21). On d 28, feeding SDPP decreased Clostridium difficile (P < 0.05), but it increased (P < 0.001) Streptococcus suis and Prevotella denticola. In conclusion, feeding SDPP altered the fecal microbial communities in pigs. The results of this study provide information to explain the positive effects of feeding SDPP on growth and gut health of nursery pigs, but further experimentation may be warranted to fully elucidate the effects of SDPP.   

Keywords: Microbiota, Pigs, Spray-dried porcine plasma