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Body lipid composition its directly related with fat intake. In lactating sows dietary fat is mainly transferred to mammary glands, increasing milk lipid concentration and modifying the fatty acids (FA) composition of the milk and piglets’ tissues. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of adding 35g/kg of different sources of fat (lard vs. sunflower oil) to diets for sows on the composition of FA in the tissues of the progeny at weaning and one week after weaning (28 and 35 days of age respectively). A total of 20 multiparous sows (Landrace × Large White) in the 3–6 parities, with a body weight (BW) of 276 ± 38.0kg were randomly selected and assigned to two dietary treatments that only differed in the fat source: lard (L) and sunflower oil (SFO) from day 35 of gestation and during lactation. One piglet per sow was slaughtered immediately after weaning (day 28) and the other one was housed individually and was slaughtered one week after weaning (day 35).
No differences between treatments were observed for BW, feed intake, litter size, survival rate, and total litter weight. With the inclusion of L in the diet of the sows, increased (P<0.01) C18:1 n-9 concentration and reduced C18:2 n-6 concentration in both colostrum and milk, as compared to the inclusion of SFO (P<0.01). Sows fed the L diet had higher (P<0.001) concentration of C16:0 and C18:1 n-7 in colostrum than sows fed the SFO. Time effect was observed on intramuscular fat content in piglets (P<0.012) one week after weaning. The fat source included in gestating and lactating diets affected (P<0.05) C14:0, C16:1n-7, C17:1, C18:0, C18:1n-9, C18:1n-7, C18:2n-6, C20:1n-9 and C20:3n-9 concentrations in the subcutaneous fat of the offspring. The intramuscular concentration of MUFA in pigs was modified with time (P<0.001). In addition, an interaction between sow diet and sampling time in the pigs was found; the decrease in the concentration of intramuscular FA was more pronounced in pigs from sows fed SFO than in pigs from sows fed the L.
Type of fat fed to sows during gestation and lactation alters colostrum and milk FA composition, which in turn affects the subcutaneous and intramuscular FA composition of weaning pigs. Pigs from sows fed a diet rich in PUFA showed higher FA mobilization, than pigs from sows fed a diet rich in SFA.
J.G. Vicente, B. Isabel, G. Cordero and C.J. Lopez-Bote. (2013) Fatty acid profile of the sow diet alters fat metabolism and fatty acid composition in weanling pigs. Animal Feed Science and Technology, 181 45–53 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.anifeedsci.2013.02.002