Effect of the supplementation with a combination of plant extracts on sow and piglet performance and physiology during lactation and around weaning

Abstract Weaning is a critical period for pigs. Some plant extracts showing antioxidant, anti-inflammatory or antibacterial properties, provided to piglets and/or their dam, may improve piglets’ robustness at weaning, thus reducing the need for antobiotics. This study investigated the effects of a maternal and/or a direct supplementation of piglets with a combination of plant extracts on sow and piglet performance and their metabolic, immune, inflammatory, and oxidative status during lactation and around weaning. Sixty-four sows were assigned to the control or treated group. Treated sows were supplemented with a powdered plant extracts supplement daily top-dressed on feed from day of gestation (DG) 106 to day of lactation (DL) 28 and a liquid solution top-dressed on feed on DG109. Within each sow group, litters were divided into two groups: a control piglet group and a treated piglet group. A single dose of a liquid solution was orally given to piglets in the treated piglet group. Piglets were weaned on DL28. Blood samples were collected from sows on DG94, DG112, and DL26 and from 2 piglets per litter on DL3, DL14, DL25, and 5 d postweaning to analyze indicators of metabolic, immune, inflammatory, and oxidative status. Colostrum and milk samples were collected at farrowing, DL6, and 26. Maternal supplementation had no effect on sow metabolic, immune, inflammatory, and oxidative status except for fewer lymphocytes on DG112 (P < 0.05) and a lower plasma concentration of non-esterified fatty acids on DL26 (P < 0.05). Maternal supplementation tended to decrease dry matter and gross energy (P < 0.10) and reduced fat and haptoglobin concentrations (P < 0.01) in milk on DL26. Maternal supplementation had no effect on piglets’ growth performance and blood indicators during lactation and around weaning. On DL25, the direct supplementation of piglets decreased their neutrophils proportion (P < 0.05), increased the expression of genes encoding pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines in whole blood culture in response to lipopolysaccharide (P < 0.05) and tended to decrease the oxidative stress index (P = 0.06). After weaning, these beneficial effects were no longer observed but the supplementation improved piglets’ growth performance during the postweaning period (P < 0.05). Plant extract supplementation could thus modify the composition of mammary secretions and improve postweaning performance of piglets potentially related to the modification of their immune and oxidative status before weaning.