Combination-Feeding Causes Differences in Aspects of Systemic and Mucosal Immune Cell Phenotypes and Functions Compared to Exclusive Sow-Rearing or Formula-Feeding in Piglets

• Published in: Nutrients Vol. 13; no. 4; p. 1097
• Main Authors: Radlowski, Emily C, Wang, Mei, Monaco, Marcia H, Comstock, Sarah S, Donovan, Sharon M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 27.03.2021; MDPI
• Subjects: Animal Feed; Animal Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; Animals; Animals, Suckling; Arginase; Babies; Baby foods; Breast feeding; Breast milk; CD4 antigen; Cytokines - genetics; Cytokines - metabolism; Diet - veterinary; Feeding; Female; Food, Formulated; formula; Galactooligosaccharides; Helper cells; Hogs; immune; Immune system; Infant formulas; Interleukin 6; Inulin; lipopolysaccharide; Lipopolysaccharides; Lymph nodes; Lymph Nodes - cytology; Lymphocytes B; Macrophages; Maternity & paternity leaves; Milk; Mucosal immunity; Nitric oxide; Nitric-oxide synthase; Nutrition; Peripheral blood mononuclear cells; Phenotypes; prebiotic; Prebiotics; Spleen; Spleen - cytology; Swine; Swine - growth & development; Tumor necrosis factor-α; United States > US; formula; immune; prebiotic; lipopolysaccharide
• ISSN: 2072-6643; 2072-6643
• DOI: 10.3390/nu13041097

Combination feeding (human milk and formula) is common and influences immune development compared to exclusive breastfeeding. Infant formulas contain prebiotics, which influence immune development. Herein, immune development of combination-fed (CF), sow-reared (SR) and formula-fed (FF) piglets, and the effect of prebiotics was tested. Piglets ( = 47) were randomized to: SR, FF, CF, FF+prebiotic (FP), and CF+prebiotic (CP). FP and CP received formula with galactooligosaccharides and inulin (4 g/L in a 4:1 ratio). CF and CP piglets were sow-reared for until d5 and then rotated between a sow and formula every 12 h. On day 21, piglets received an intraperitoneal injection of lipopolysaccharide 2 h prior to necropsy. Immune cells from blood, mesenteric lymph nodes (MLN), and spleen were phenotyped. Classical (nitric oxide synthase) and alternative (arginase activity) activation pathways were measured in isolated macrophages. Serum IL-6 and TNF-α were measured by ELISA. SR piglets had lower ( < 0.0001) CD4 T-helper cells and higher ( < 0.0001) B-cells in PBMC than all other groups. CP piglets had higher ( < 0.0001) arginase activity compared to all other groups. FF piglets had higher ( < 0.05) IL-6 compared to both CF and SR, but were similar to FP and CP. Thus, CF, with or without prebiotics, differentially affected immunity compared to exclusively fed groups.