Ileal and total tract digestibility in local (Mong Cai) and exotic (Landrace x Yorkshire) piglets fed low and high fibre diets, with or without enzyme supplementation

Tran Thi Bich Ngoc, Ninh Thi Len and Brian Ogle*

Departement of Animal Feed and Nutrition, National Institute of Animal Husbandry, Hanoi, Vietnam
bichngocniah75@hotmail.com
*Department of Animal Nutrition and Management,
Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden

 

Abstract

The experiment was carried out to determine the effect of low and high fibre diets (100 and 200 g/kg neutral detergent fibre (NDF)), with or without enzyme supplementation (a-amylase, b-glucanase, cellulase and protease), on ileal and total tract digestibility in two breeds of piglets at an initial age of 30 days. The breeds were local (Mong Cai, MC) and exotic (Landrace x Yorkshire, LY). The experiment was done according to a 2 x 2 x 2 factorial completely randomized design with 4 replications.

The ileal and total tract apparent digestibility of organic matter (OM), crude protein (CP), crude fibre (CF), NDF, acid detergent fibre (ADF) and amino acids (AA) in the high fibre diet was lower than in the low fibre diet (P<0.01).  The ileal apparent digestibility of nutrients and amino acids was similar (P>0.05) between MC and LY, while the total tract apparent digestibility of nutrients was higher for the MC than for LY (P<0.05). Enzyme supplementation of the high fibre diet improved the digestibility of all dietary components (P<0.05) at ileum and total tract, but there was no effect of enzyme supplementation of the low fibre diet (P>0.05).

Keywords: breed, piglets, digestibility, enzyme supplementation, fibre

 

Introduction

Like other non-ruminant animals, pigs do not have enzymes that are able to degrade the cell-wall and non-starch polysaccharides (NSP) found in various concentrations in the plant materials used as feeds (Bach Knudsen, 1997). The NSP and lignin are commonly referred to as dietary fibre. These substrates are considered as indigestible in the small intestine but in the large intestine a variable fraction of fibre will be fermented to short-chain fatty acids and thereby serve as a source of energy for the host. In piglets, however, the capacity of the micro-flora to degrade the NSP is less developed than in older pigs (Graham et al 1988). Lack of enzymatic capacity might be compensated for by supplementation of the diet with exogenous enzymes.

The effects of genotype on the coefficient of total tract apparent digestibility (CTTAD) have been reported by many researchers (Len et al 2006, Ndindina et al 2002; Fevrier et al 1992). The results implied that indigenous pigs can digest fibre better than improved pigs. The explanation given is that indigenous pigs have a higher capacity of the gastro-intestinal tract and micro-floral activity in the hind-gut than improved pigs (Jørgensen et al 1996; Freire et al 2000). For example, Freire et al. (2003) found that the Alentejano breed of Spain had a higher digestibility of fibrous diets than an improved breed (Duroc x Landrace), and this was attributed to a better ability of the enzymes, namely xylanase and cellulase, of the hindgut micro-flora to degrade the cell-wall constituents of the diets.

The effects of using feed enzymes as supplements to piglet diets has been investigated by several researchers, with promising results, as it was found that enzyme supplementation improved nutrient digestibility and growth performance, especially after weaning (Medel et al 2002; Jensen et al 1998). Högberg and Lindberg (2004) also indicated that an increased dietary content of NSP and supplementation with fibre-degrading enzymes increased organic acids in the ileum, indicating an enhanced digestibility of fibre in the small intestine in weaned piglets.

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of low- and high-fibre diets, with or without enzyme addition, on ileal and total tract digestibility in local (Mong Cai, MC) and exotic (Landrace x Yorkshire, LY) weaned pigs.
 

Material and methods

Location and climate of the study area

The experiment was conducted at the Station of Research and Testing of Animal Feed, National Institute of Animal Husbandry, Hanoi, Vietnam, from the middle of April to the end of May, 2006. The climate in this area is tropical monsoon, with a wet season between April and November and a dry season from December to March. The mean daily temperature is about 29⁰C in the wet season

Animals and management

The animals in the experiment were weaned exotic (Large White x Yorkshire, LY) and indigenous piglets (Mong Cai, MC ) bought from the Pig Research Center in Hanoi and the Mong Cai farm in Quangninh Province, respectively. The mean body weight at 30 days of age was 7.6 ± 0.3 kg for the LY and 4.6 ± 0.3 kg for the MC breed. Before the experiment started, the piglets were vaccinated against Cholera, Pasteurellosis, Pneumonia and Paratyphoid. The piglets were fed ad-libitum throughout the experimental period, and were supplied water ad libitum by automatic water nipples. The pens and the troughs were cleaned every day.  

Experimental feeds

The diets were based on maize meal, fish meal, soybean meal, full fat soy bean meal, soybean oil, rice bran and cassava residue meal. The diets were calculated to contain 100 and 200 g NDF kg^-1 DM and were formulated to contain equal concentrations of metabolisible energy, crude protein and essential amino acids to meet requirements according to NRC (1998). The chemical composition of the ingredients is shown in Table 1 and the ingredient and chemical composition of the experimental diets in Table 2. The contents of amino acids are in Table 3. Chromic oxide was included in the diets (5g/kg as fed) as a marker for determination of the digestibility of the nutrients. An enzyme mixture was included at a level of 1 g/kg of the diet, as fed. The enzyme mixture was supplied by Kemin Industries (Asia) Pte Ltd Company (Singapore), and included a-amylase (788 units/g), b-glucanase (5602 units/g), cellulase (9007 units/g) and protease (922 units/g).

 

 

 

Maize meal, fish meal, soybean meal, full fat soybean meal, soybean oil and rice bran were bought from the Station of Research and Testing of Animal Feeds, NIAH, Hanoi. Cassava residue was bought in Hoai Duc district, Ha Tay Province, and stored in plastic bags to avoid moisture entering. The diets were mixed every 7 days and put into plastic bags in order to maintain the quality of the feed and prevent mould. 

Experimental design

The experiment was done according to a completely randomized 2 x 2 x 2 factorial design, with two breeds (MC and LY), two fibre levels (low, 100 g NDF kg^-1 DM and high, 200 g NDF kg^-1DM) in the diet, with and without enzyme supplementation. A total of 64 weaned piglets from the two breeds (32 MC and 32 LY) from 4 litters of each breed was involved in the experiment. The pigs had 5 days for adaptation to the new feed and were allocated into 32 pens of 2 pigs (one male and one female). The piglets from different litters were distributed equally among the treatments. Each treatment consisted of 4 pens, with each pen as a replicate. The length of the experiment was 30 days. 

Measurements and data collection

During the 5 days before the end of the experiment, faeces of individual piglets from each pen were collected in the morning and stored in a freezer at -4^o C. At the end of the study, the total faeces of each piglet were pooled and samples taken for analysis. At the age of 60 days, one piglet from each pen was slaughtered after fasting for 4 hours. Immediately, after slaughter, the digesta were taken from ileum (about 100 and 80 cm of small intestine before the ileo- caecal ostium for LY and MC, respectively) and immediately transferred to plastic jars and frozen at -20 ⁰C until analysis. Within breed and within treatment, samples of ileum contents and faeces from the same piglet were taken for analysis. Consequently, there were 4 samples of ileum digesta and 4 samples of faeces for each treatment within breed.

The digestibility of the diets at each sampling site was calculated using the indicator technique (Sauer et al 2000) according to the equation:

CADD = (1 − (DC_F* I_D/DC_D *I_F))*100

Where CADD is the coefficient of apparent digestibility of dietary components in the assay diet; DC_F the dietary component concentration in ileal digesta or faeces (g kg⁻¹); I_D the indicator concentration in the assay diet (g kg⁻¹); DC_D: dietary component concentration in the assay diet (g kg⁻¹); I_F the indicator concentration in ileal digesta or faeces (g kg⁻¹).

Chemical analysis

Samples of diet and ileum digesta were analysed for dry matter (DM), organic matter (OM),crude protein (CP), crude fibre (CF), neutral detergent fibre (NDF), acid detergent fibre (ADF), ether extract (EE), amino acids and chromium oxide. The analysis of the chemical composition of faecal samples was similar to samples of diet, except for amino acids, which were not analysed. Dry matter, CF, EE, and OM were analysed according to the standard methods of AOAC (1990), and Crude protein was determined by the Kjeldahl procedure. Amino acids were determined by high performance liquid chromatography (HP No 01090 90025 – 1990). NDF and ADF were determined by the method of Van Soest et al. (1991). Chromium was determined by atom absorption spectroscopy (NMAM, 1994).

Statistical analysis

The data were analyzed statistically using the GLM procedure of Minitab Software, version 13.31 (Minitab, 2000). Treatment means which showed significant differences at the probability level of P<0.05 were compared using Tukey’s pairwise comparison procedures.

The mathematical model was as follows:

Y = M + B_i + D_j + E_k + (B_i x D_j) + (B_i x E_k) + (D_j x E_k) + e

Where

Y = The dependent variable

M = The overall mean

B_i = Effect of breed i

D_j = Effect of fibre level j

E_k = Effect of enzyme supplementation k

(B_i x D_j) = Interaction between breed i and fibre level j

(B_i x E_k) = Interaction between breed i and enzyme supplementation k

(D_j x E_k) = Interaction between fibre level j and enzyme supplementation k

e = Error

 
Results

Effect of breed, fibre level in the diet and enzyme supplementation on the coefficient of ileal apparent digestibility

The coefficients of ileal apparent digestibility (CIAD) of nutrients are shown in Table 4. There were no significant differences in CIAD of all nutrients between breeds (P>0.05), although MC had higher numerical values of CIAD of all nutrients than LY. Fibre level and enzyme addition affected the CIAD of all nutrients (P<0.01), with the exception of ether extract. The CIAD of OM, CP, CF, NDF, and ADF in the diet supplemented with the enzyme mixture was 3.1, 2.8, 1.7, 1.5 and 2.1%, respectively, higher (P < 0.01) than in the diet without supplementation. The ileal digestibility of OM, CP, CF, NDF, and ADF in the high-fibre diet was lower than in the low-fibre diet (P<0.01). There was an interaction between fibre level and enzyme supplementation for CIAD of nutrients (P<0.05), except for EE. In both breeds, enzyme supplementation of the low- fibre diet had no effect on CIAD, while there were considerable improvements for the high-fibre diet. The improvement in CIAD in the high-fibre diet of OM, CP, EE, CF, NDF and ADF with enzyme supplementation in MC was 5.3, 4.6, 2.1, 3.9, 2.6 and 3.1%, respectively; while in LY it was 7.3, 6.2, 4.5, 2.0, 3.3 and 3.5 %, respectively (P < 0.01).

The CIAD of amino acids (AA) are shown in Table 5. The effects of breed, fibre level in the diet and enzyme addition on CIAD of AA were similar to the effects on the CIAD of CP. CIAD of AA was not different between the two breeds (P>0.05). Fibre level in the diet had a negative effect, and enzyme supplementation a positive effect on the CIAD of AA (P<0.05). Supplementation of enzymes to the high-fibre diet improved the CIAD of almost all AA (P<0.05), while this effect was not found on the low-fibre diet (P>0.05). Among essential AA, CIAD of histidine, methionine and lysine were higher than of the other AA, while the CIAD of arginine, valine and leucine had the lowest values, with intermediate values for threonine, tyrosine, phenylalanine and isoleucine. Among the non-essential AA, the lowest CIAD were found for alanine, proline, and glycine, while the highest values were for glutamic acid, and with intermediate values for aspartic acid and serine.  

 

 

Effect of breed, fibre level in the diet and enzyme supplementation on the coefficient of total tract apparent digestibility

Treatment effects on the coefficient of total tract apparent digestibility (CTTAD) are shown in Table 6. In contrast to CIAD, there were significant differences in CTTAD of OM, CP, EE, CF, NDF and ADF between breeds, with higher values for MC (P<0.05). Also, fibre level in the diet had a negative effect on CTTAD of OM, CP, EE, CF, NDF, and ADF (P < 0.05), while enzyme supplementation had a positive effect (P<0.05). Overall, the supplementation of the enzyme mixture to the diet increased CTTAD of OM, CP, EE, CF, NDF and ADF by 1.1, 2.2, 2.5, 2.2, 2.1 and 1.4% units, respectively. The reduction of CTTAD of OM, CP, EE, CF, NDF and ADF with increased fibre content was 2.1, 2.5, 2.7, 1.3, 2.4, and 1.6% units, respectively. Supplementation of enzymes to the high-fibre diet increased the CTTAD of OM, CP and fibre components (P<0.05), while supplementation to the low-fibre diet had no effect (P>0.05). The difference of CTTAD of OM, CP, EE, CF, NDF and ADF between the high-fibre diets with and without enzyme supplementation in MC was 2.8, 2.6, 5.2, 1.7, 2.1, and 1.5% units, respectively, while in LY it was 2.8, 6.0, 5.7, 5.7, 5.1 and 4.9% units, respectively.

Discussion

Effect of fibre level in the diet on the coefficient of ileal and total tract apparent digestibilities

The present study indicates that an increased level of dietary fibre resulted in a decrease in the ileal and total tract digestibilities of OM, CP, CF, NDF, ADF and amino acids. These results are in agreement with Len et al. (2006) and Lindberg and Andersson (1998), who reported that the inclusion of fibre in the diet reduced the digestibility of energy and dietary components. Högberg and Lindberg (2003) also showed that a higher proportion of insoluble NSP in the diet reduced the digestibility of OM and fibre components in the small intestine of newly weaned piglets and in the total digestive tract of growing pigs. The lower digestibility of all nutrients is due to the increase in fibre content of the diets, and the fibre fraction has the greatest influence on dietary components and energy digestibility (Noblet and Perez, 1993; McDonald et al 1995; Högberg and Lindberg, 2003). The dietary fibre acts as a poorly digested diluent, and also increases gastric viscosity, the production of endogenous nitrogen and the flow rate of digesta (Jørgensen et al 1996). Dietary fibre also increases the rate of gastric emptying of digesta and inhibits the exposure of digesta to enzymes, which is an additional factor reducing digestibility (Rainbird and Low, 1986). The results in the current study are in agreement with findings by Sauer et al. (1991), who also observed a tendency towards lower ileal digestibilities for CP and amino acids with the inclusion of fibre in the diet.  Zebrowska et al. (1981) also found a significant decrease in the ileal amino acid digestibility when 5 or 10% cellulose was included in a barley-starch and fish meal based diet. The inclusion of fibre has also been shown to increase the sloughing of intestinal mucosal cells (Bergner et al 1975 cited by Sauer et al 1991) and to enhance mucus production (Schneeman et al 1982), which will further reduce apparent digestibilities, particularly of nitrogen.

However, the reduction in the ileal and total tract apparent digestibility of OM, CP, CF, NDF, ADF, with increasing dietary fibre, was markedly lower in the present study than earlier reported for diets with inclusion of cassava leaves, leucaena leaves and groundnut foliage (Phuc and Lindberg, 2000). This can be explained by differences in the chemical composition of the fibre fractions affecting the nutrient digestibility to a different degree (Van Soest, 1994 cited by Phuc and Lindberg, 2000).

Effect of enzyme supplementation in the diet on the coefficient of ileal and total tract apparent digestibilities

The present study shows that enzyme supplementation of the high fibre diets had a positive effect on nutrient and amino acid digestibility in both ileum and total tract. Other studies have demonstrated an increased digestibility of starch and nitrogen, for example after addition of ß-glucanase to barley based diets (Graham et al 1988; Inborr et al 1993), but did not reveal the mode of action of the exogenous enzymes. Dierick and Decuypere (1996) reported that the ileal digestibility of protein, fat, NSP, dietary fibre, amino acids, and phosphorus in pigs fed wheat by-product diets increased substantially, and Diebold et al. (2004) also demonstrated a positive effect on the ileal digestibility values of OM, CP, CF, NDF and amino acids with xylanase supplementation of diets for Landrace and Pietrain crossbred piglets. In a study by Li et al. (1996), the digestibility of dry matter, crude protein and energy in barley-soybean meal based diets increased linearly with increasing levels of ß-glucanase supplementation. Similarly, dietary supplementation with multi-enzyme preparations (cellulase, galactanase, mannanase, pectinase) improved not only nutrient ileal digestibility but also nutrient total tract digestibility in weaned pigs (Omogbenigun et al 2004). The positive effects may be due to disruption of intact cell walls and release of entrapped nutrients, as suggested by Hesselman and Åman (1986) or alternatively a reduction of digesta viscosity (Bedford and Classen, 1992; Jensen et al 1998). The mechanism of enzyme action is to prevent compact folding of the molecules and to increase the water-holding capacity, which results in its characteristic viscosity and gelling properties, which tend to hinder intestinal motility (Holt et al 1979) thereby decreasing the mixing of digesta, digestive enzymes and other necessary components required for digestion and absorption (Vahouny and Cassidy, 1985). These properties may also delay or decrease the digestion and absorption of nutrients by increasing the unstirred fluid layer, creating a physical barrier at the absorption surface on the microvilli (Johnson and Gee, 1981).

However, several studies indicated that the digestibility of nutrients was not affected by enzyme supplementation. Diebold et al. (2005) showed that the supplementation of xylanase to a wheat-based diet fed to improved piglets in Canada had no effect on the digestibility of energy and nutrients in both ileum and total tract. The addition of b-glucanase to piglet diets based on barley (Jensen et al 1998) or different cereals and soybean meal (Li et al 1996) had no effect on the digestibility of dietary components and starch, either in the small or the large intestine. This is presumably due to the limited capacity of the exogenous enzymes to degrade these components. Other studies also found no response in digestibility of nutrients and energy with enzyme supplementation of diets for weaned piglets (Mellange et al 1992, Högberg and Lindberg, 2004). In studies with growing pigs, Thacker et al. (2002) observed no difference in digestibility coefficients for dry matter, crude protein and energy between diets with or without a pentosanase supplement. Similarly, Graham et al. (1986, 1989) found no effect of b-glucanase supplementation on ileal as well as faecal digestibilities of crude protein and energy in studies with 30-40 kg and 80 kg pigs fed barley based diets.  In general, the response to enzyme supplementation of nutrient digestibility may vary, and depends on which target substrates the enzyme acts on (Bach Knudsen, 1997) and on the age of the pigs (Lindemann et al 1986) and possibly on the breed.

The present study also shows that the effect of enzyme supplementation on CIAD of fibre components in MC pigs was higher than that on CTTAD. However, for LY pigs the effect of enzyme on CTTAD of fibre components was higher than on CIAD. This was probably due to the fact that the MC breed has a higher digestive capacity in hindgut, with the result that the exogenous enzymes are not necessary.

Effects of breed on the coefficient of ileal and total tract apparent digestibilities

The current study supports findings that indigenous pig breeds can digest high fibre diets more efficiently than exotics. The digestion of OM and dietary components in MC pigs was higher than in LY pigs. The present data suggest that these pigs may have adapted their digestive physiology to a poor nutrient supply, resulting in better utilization of high-fibre diets (Khieu Borin et al 2005). Similarly, Len et al. (2006) and Khieu Borin et al. (2005) also indicated that the MC breed digested energy and dietary components more efficiently than LY, and concluded that fibrous diets are more appropriate for indigenous than for exotic pigs. These results are in agreement with Freire et al. (2003), who reported that Alentejano native pigs utilized the cell wall components of the diet better than exotic breeds. Indigenous pigs in Southeast Portugal from an age of 21 days also showed a higher digestive potential towards fibrous dietary components than the Large White breed (Freire et al 1998) and a higher activity of the microbial population present in the hindgut, which is particularly important for degradation of dietary fibre (Bach Knudsen and Hansen, 1991). Similarly, Ndindana et al. (2002) concluded that the digestibility of diets containing graded levels of maize cobs was higher in indigenous Zimbabwean pigs than in an exotic breed (Large White). In contrast, Ly et al. (1998) found that the total tract digestibility of most dietary components in very fibrous diets was not higher in Cuban Creole than in LW pigs. Kemp et al. (1991) also concluded that even when the diet was rich in fibre, the digestibility of CF in the indigenous Chinese Meishan was similar to Dutch Landrace pigs. It appears likely though that the effect of breed on digestibility does depend on dietary fibre level, because in some studies this effect is only seen when pigs are fed very fibrous diets. This is probably due to the disproportionately longer small intestine and colon in indigenous pigs compared with exotic pigs. To our knowledge, there are no data available relating to the anatomy and physiology of the digestive tract of MC pigs. In a study performed by Fevrier et al. (1992), there were no differences in digestibility between Chinese Meishan (MS) and Large White (LW) pigs fed low fibre diets, but the MS pigs digested high fibre diets more efficiently. However, in our study for total tract the difference between MC and LY pigs for OM digestibility was 4.25% units on the low fibre diet and 3.40% units on the high fibre diet, indicating that the superiority of the MC was independent of the fibre level in the diet. However, the difference between the two breeds on the high fibre diet (3.40%) and on the low fibre diet (4.25%) was not very great. At ileal level the difference between the MC and LY pigs was rather small, 1.35% units on the low fibre diet and 1.80% units on the high fibre diet.

The results of the present study indicate thus that genotype had no significant influence on the ileal digestibility of OM, CP, CF, NDF, ADF and amino acids, whereas the total tract digestibility was significantly higher in the MC. This can be explained by the fact that most of the difference between the MC and exotic pigs is a result of the greater development of the caecum and colon, where bacteria work more efficiently. The lack of any effect of breed on ileal digestibility of amino acids is in agreement with Hennig et al. (2004), who also found no differences in amino acid apparent ileal digestibilities between Minipigs and Saddleback pigs.
 

Conclusions

• High fibre content in the diet reduced dietary component digestibility at the ileum as well as the total tract in piglets.

• There was no effect of breed on the coefficient of ileal apparent digestibilities of nutrients, but the Mong Cai had higher coefficient of total tract apparent digestibilities of nutrients than LY. The results from this study thus suggest that high fibre diets are more appropriate for indigenous than for exotic pigs.

• Enzyme supplementation of the high fibre diet improved the digestibility of all dietary components at ileum and total tract, but there was no effect of enzyme supplementation of the low fibre diet.

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Sida-SAREC (Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency - Department for Research Cooperation), through the regional MEKARN program and the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Department of Animal Nutrition and Management, for their financial support of this study. Special thanks to researchers in the Department of Animal Feed and Nutrition of the National Institute of Animal Husbandry for assistance in carrying out the study.

 

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