Lactobacillus johnsonii reduces post-weaning diarrhoea in piglets
Chinese researchers evaluated the impact of Lactobacillus johnsonii supplementation on regulating piglet gut health and the incidence of diarrhoea. They published their findings in the journal Animals.
Post-weaning diarrhoea causes serious economic losses in the swine industry. Historically, antibiotics have been used to prevent and treat post-weaning diarrhoea. However, their application has been prohibited due to antibiotic resistance issues. Routine early probiotic intervention is a well-established approach to substitute antibiotics in post-weaning diarrhoea management.
Data collection
The team selected 32 piglets for this trial that lasted 21 days. They randomly divided 16 piglets into 2 groups:
- an experimental group of piglets that received 2mL ampicillin for 3 weeks;
- a control group that received 2 mL normal saline.
Then researchers used another 16 piglets and randomly divided them into 2 groups to verify the relationship between Lactobacillus johnsonii and the endocannabinoid system which regulates gut health. The piglets in the experimental group received 2 mL Lactobacillus johnsonii for a week, and the piglets in the control group received 2 mL normal saline. They recorded daily diarrhoea index of all piglets and calculated the average daily gain, and livers, kidneys, and spleen weight. They collected gut samples to quantify Lactobacillus johnsonii in digesta extract.
Impact of ampicillin on post-weaning diarrhoea and gut health
Ampicillin administration reduced the incidence of diarrhoea in piglets. However, ampicillin did not affect the average daily gains or liver, kidney, spleen weight in piglets. It downregulated the expression of genes associated with gut barrier integrity indicating the important role of microbiota in gut health.
Impact of ampicillin on Lactobacillus johnsonii in piglet gut
Ampicillin treatment reduced the relative abundance of Lactobacillus johnsonii in the jejunums and colons of weaned piglets. Dietary supplementation of Lactobacillus ameliorated piglet diarrhoea. However, it had no impact on average daily gain and the weight of liver, kidney, and spleen in piglets.
Lactobacillus johnsonii and gut health
Dietary supplementation of Lactobacillus johnsonii upregulated the expression of gut development-related genes, gut motility-related genes, and gut barrier-related genes in piglets, thus improving gut health.
The authors concluded that dietary supplementation of Lactobacillus johnsonii reduces the incidence of post-weaning diarrhoea in piglets through the maintenance of gut barrier integrity.
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