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The present study was conducted to determine the effects of L-glutamine (Gln) on growth performance, apparent total tract digestibility (ATTD), blood profiles, related enzyme activity, small intestinal mucosal morphology and expression of genes related to intestinal health in weanling pigs. A total of 250 [(Landrace× Yorkshire) x Duroc] pigs (9.22±0.11 kg) were blocked on the basis of sex and body weight, and then randomly assigned to 1 of the following 5 treatments: 1) CON (basal diet); 2) 1/9 Gln/Glu (CON +0.1% Gln +0.9% Glu); 3) 2/8 Gln/Glu (CON +0.2% Gln +0.8% Glu); 4) 1% Gln (CON +1% Gln); 5) 1% Glu (CON +1% Glu). There were 5 replications (pens) per treatment and 10 pigs per pen in this 28-d experiment.
Pigs fed the 1% Gln diet had a higher ADG and G: F than those fed CON diet during d 0–14 and the overall period. The ATTD of dry matter (DM) and nitrogen (N) was the greatest in response to the 1% Gln diet on d 28. Compared with CON, feeding the 1% Gln diet increased the content of superoxide dismutase (SOD), while it decreased the malondialdehyde (MDA) content on d 28 in the serum. The levels of immunoglobulin G (IgG) and immunoglobulin M (IgM) in the serum was increased in the 1% Gln group, whereas the percentage of the cluster of differentiation 8 receptors (CD8+) was reduced in the 1% Gln group compared with CON. The activity of lactase was improved in pigs fed the 1% Gln diet compared with those fed CON diet. However, the activity of glutamine synthetase (GS) was reduced in pigs fed Gln1, Gln2, the 1% Gln and 1% Glu diets compared with those fed CON diet. Feeding of the 1% Gln diet declined the relative expression levels of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARγ) and mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR), while improving (P<0.05) the relative expression level of pyruvate kinase (PK) in the duodenum, jejunum and ileum, respectively, compared with CON.
Taken together, the 1% Gln supplementation to weanling pig diets could modify intestinal health and improve ATTD of nutrients so as to benefit the growth performance. Nevertheless, the Gln/Glu use could not achieve the effects of 1% Gln group in this study.
He, J., Feng, G. D., Ao, X., Li, Y. F., Qian, H. X., Liu, J. B., & He, Z. Z. (2016). Effects of L-glutamine on growth performance, antioxidant ability, immunity and expression of genes related to intestinal health in weanling pigs. Livestock Science, 189, 102-109. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.livsci.2016.05.009
