The study aimed to adapt the SHIME® model, developed to simulate human digestion and fermentation, to a baby-SPIME (baby Simulator of Pig Intestinal Microbial Ecosystem). What constitutes a unique feature of this model is its twofold objective of introducing an ileal microbial community and mimicking a dietary weaning transition. This model should then be ideally suited to test the dietary weaning strategies of piglets in vitro. Regarding the microbiota, the main phyla making up the model were Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes and Proteobacteria although Bacteroidetes decreased after inoculation (p = 0.043 in ileum, p = 0.021 in colon) and Delta-Proteobacteria were favoured (p = 0.083 in ileum, p = 0.043 in colon) compared to Gamma-Proteobacteria. The designed model led to a low representation of Bacilli - especially Lactobacillus sp. in the ileum and a weak representation of Bacteroidia in the proximal colon. However, Mitsuokella and Prevotella were part of the major genera of the model along with Bifidobacterium, Fusobacterium, Megasphaera and Bacteroides. As a result of weaning, two major changes - normally occurring in vivo - were detected in the system: firstly, Firmicutes diminished when Bacteroidetes increased particularly in the proximal colon; secondly, Bacteroides decreased and Prevotella increased (mean value for four runs). In terms of metabolite production, while a ratio acetate: propionate: butyrate of 60:26:14 was obtained in post-weaned colon, the expected inversion of the ratio propionate: butyrate in the post-weaned ileum was unfortunately not observed. To conclude, the so-called baby-SPIME model meets expectations regarding the resident microbiota of the proximal colon bioreactor and the metabolites produced thereof. In terms of the evolution of major groups of bacteria, the in vitro weaning process appeared to be successful. However, higher concentration of butyric acid would have been expected in ileum part of newly weaned piglets, as observed in vivo. The microbiota in the ileum bioreactor seemed in fact to act like a pre-colon. This suggests that microbial profile in ileum bioreactor had to be improved.

Apple pomace (AP) is known to be rich in biomolecules beneficial for health and it may advantageously be used to overcome the critical step of piglets’ weaning. The study aimed to determine the effect of two levels of incorporation of AP on the performance, intestinal morphology, and microbiota of weaned piglets and investigate this feed ingredient as a weaning strategy. An experiment was performed with 42 piglets from weaning (28 days old) over a five-week period, including three iso-energetic and iso-nitrogenous diets (0%, 2%, and 4% dried AP diets) with seven pen-repetitions per diet (two pigs per pen). AP diets were beneficial for the average daily gain calculated on week 3 (p = 0.038) and some parameters of the intestinal architecture on the 35 post-weaning day. The 4% AP diet was beneficial for the feed conversion ratio (p = 0.002) and the energetic feed efficiency (p = 0.004) on the 35 post-weaning day. AP tended to influence the consistency of feces (softer to liquid, p = 0.096) and increased the counts of excreted pathogens (p = 0.072). Four percent AP influenced the richness of the microbiota and the bacteria profile as observed for the phylum Bacteroidetes or the class Clostridia. The 4% AP diet appeared as an interesting weaning strategy that should be evaluated in a large cohort.

Mass spectrometry (MS)-based techniques, including liquid chromatography coupling, shotgun lipidomics, MS imaging, and ion mobility, are widely used to analyze lipids. However, with enhanced separation capacity and an optimized chemical derivatization approach, comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography (GC×GC) can be a powerful tool to investigate some groups of small lipids in the framework of lipidomics. This study describes the optimization of a dedicated two-stage derivatization and extraction process to analyze different saturated and unsaturated fatty acids in plasma by two-dimensional gas chromatography–time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC×GC–TOFMS) using a full factorial design. The optimized condition has a composite desirability of 0.9159. This optimized sample preparation and chromatographic condition were implemented to differentiate between positive (BT) and negative (UT) boar-tainted pigs based on fatty acid profiling in pig serum using GC×GC–TOFMS. A chemometric screening, including unsupervised (PCA, HCA) and supervised analysis (PLS–DA), as well as univariate analysis (volcano plot), was performed. The results suggested that the concentration of PUFA ω-6 and cholesterol derivatives were significantly increased in BT pigs, whereas SFA and PUFA ω-3 concentrations were increased in UT pigs. The metabolic pathway and quantitative enrichment analysis suggest the significant involvement of linolenic acid metabolism.

Prebiotics, such as inulin, are non-digestible compounds that stimulate the growth of beneficial microbiota, which results in improved gut and overall health. In this study, we were interested to see if, and how, the ileal transcriptome altered after inulin administration in the pre-weaning period in pigs. Seventy-two Piétrain–Landrace newborn piglets were divided into three groups: (a) a control (CON) group (n = 24), (b) an inulin (IN)-0.5 group (n = 24), and (c) an IN-0.75 group (n = 24). Inulin was provided as a solution and administered twice a day. At week 4, eight piglets per group, those closest to the average in body weight, were sacrificed, and ileal scrapings were collected and analyzed using 3′ mRNA massively parallel sequencing. Only minor differences were found, and three genes were differentially expressed between the CON and IN-0.5 group, at an FDR of 10%. All three genes were downregulated in the IN-0.5 group. When comparing the CON group with the IN-0.75 group, five genes were downregulated in the IN-0.75 group, including the three genes seen earlier as differentially expressed between CON and IN-0.5. No genes were found to be differential expressed between IN-0.5 and IN-0.75. Validation of a selection of these genes was done using qRT-PCR. Among the downregulated genes were Angiopoietin-like protein 4 (ANGPTL4), Aquaporin 7 (AQP7), and Apolipoprotein A1 (APOA1). Thus, although only a few genes were found to be differentially expressed, several of them were involved in lipid metabolism, belonging to the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) signaling pathway and known to promote lipolysis. We, therefore, conclude that these lipid metabolism genes expressed in the ileum may play an important role when supplementing piglets with inulin early in life, before weaning.

Apple pomace (AP) contains biomolecules that induce changes in intestinal fermentation of monogastrics with positive expected health effects. The weaning of piglets can induce economic losses due to intestinal disturbances; new weaning strategies are, thus, welcome. The purpose of this study was to test the effect of AP on fermentation products by using baby-SPIME, an in vitro multi-compartment model dedicated to piglet weaning. A comparison was done on short chain fatty acid (SCFA) ratio and the microbiota induced in bioreactors between a control culture medium vs. an AP culture medium. The results of 2 preliminary runs showed that AP medium increased the molar ratio of propionate (p = 0.021) and decreased the molar ratio of butyrate (p = 0.009). Moreover, this medium increased the cumulative relative abundance of Prevotella sp. and Akkermansia sp. in bioreactors. AP could promote an ecosystem enriched with bacteria known as next-generation probiotics (NGP)—likely influencing the energy metabolism of piglets by their fermentation metabolites. AP could be used as a dietary strategy to influence bacterial changes in the intestine by stimulating the growth of bacteria identified as NGP.

Isoquinoline alkaloids (IQ) exert beneficial antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory effects in livestock. Therefore, we hypothesized that supplementing sows’ diets with IQ during gestation would decrease farrowing stress, affecting the piglets’ development and performance. Sows were divided into: IQ1, supplemented with IQ from gestation day 80 (G80) to weaning; IQ2, supplemented from gestation day 110 (G110) to weaning, and a non-supplemented (NC) group. Sow body weight (BW), feed intake, back-fat thickness and back-muscle thickness were monitored. Cortisol, glucose and insulin were measured in sows’ blood collected 5 d before, during, and after 7 d farrowing. Protein, fat, IgA and IgG were analyzed in the colostrum and milk. Piglets were monitored for weight and diarrhea score, and for ileum histology and gene expression 5 d post-weaning. IQ-supplemented sows lost less BW during lactation. Glucose and insulin levels were lower in the IQ groups compared to NC-sows 5 d before farrowing and had higher levels of protein and IgG in their colostrum. No other differences were observed in sows, nor in the measured parameters in piglets. In conclusion, IQ supplementation affected sows’ metabolism, reducing body weight loss during lactation. Providing IQ to sows from their entrance into the maternity barn might be sufficient to induce these effects. IQ improved colostrum quality, increasing the protein and IgG content, improving passive immunity for piglets.