Probiotics provide health benefits and are used as feed supplements as an alternative prophylactic strategy to antibiotics. However, the effects of Bacillus-based probiotics containing more than two strains when supplemented to pigs are rarely elucidated. SOLVENS (SLV) is a triple-strain Bacillus-based probiotic. In this study, we investigate the effects of SLV on performance, immunity, intestinal morphology, and microbial community in piglets. A total of 480 weaned pigs [initial body weight (BW) of 8.13 ± 0.08 kg and 28 days of age] were assigned to three treatments in a randomized complete block design: P0: basal diet (CON); P200: CON + 200 mg SLV per kg feed (6.5 × 10⁸ CFU/kg feed); and P400: CON + 400 mg SLV per kg feed (1.3 × 10⁹ CFU/kg feed). Each treatment had 20 replicated pens with eight pigs (four male/four female) per pen. During the 31 d feeding period (Phase 1 = wean to d 14, Phase 2 = d 15 to 31 after weaning), all pigs were housed in a temperature-controlled nursery room (23 to 25 °C). Feed and water were available ad libitum. The results showed that the pigs in the P400 group increased (p < 0.05) average daily gain (ADG) in phase 2 and tended (p = 0.10) to increase ADG overall. The pigs in the P200 and P400 groups tended (p = 0.10) to show improved feed conversion ratios overall in comparison with control pigs. The pigs in the P200 and P400 groups increased (p < 0.05) serum immunoglobulin A, immunoglobulin G, and haptoglobin on d 14, and serum C-reactive protein on d 31. The pigs in the P200 group showed an increased (p < 0.01) villus height at the jejunum, decreased (p < 0.05) crypt depth at the ileum compared with other treatments, and tended (p = 0.09) to have an increased villus–crypt ratio at the jejunum compared with control pigs. The pigs in the P200 and P400 groups showed increased (p < 0.05) goblet cells in the small intestine. Moreover, the pigs in the P400 group showed down-regulated (p < 0.05) interleukin-4 and tumor necrosis factor-α gene expressions, whereas the pigs in the P400 group showed up-regulated occludin gene expression in the ileum. These findings suggest that SLV alleviates immunological reactions, improves intestinal microbiota balance, and reduces weaning stress in piglets. Therefore, SOLVENS has the potential to improve health and performance for piglets.

Objective: The study was conducted to investigate the appropriate substitution level of soybean meal (SBM) for determining its net energy (NE), and establish NE prediction equation of SBM based on the determined NE values for pregnant sows.Methods: In Exp. 1, eighteen pregnant sows (Landrace×Yorkshire; parity, 2 to 3) with an initial body weight (BW) of 221.2±2.6 kg at mid-gestation were blocked by BW and randomly assigned into 3 groups. Three groups fed with a corn-SBM basal diet and two test diets with 15% and 30% energy-supplying components replaced by SBM, respectively. In Exp. 2, six diets were formulated including a corn-SBM basal diet and five SBM diets (based on the substitution level determined of Exp. 1) with different soybean sources and processing methods. Moreover, 12 pregnant pigs (BW = 209.0±3.0 kg; parity, 3 to 4) at mid-gestation were arranged in a 6×3 Youden square design.Results: Increasing substitution levels of SBM linearly increased (p<0.05) fecal and urinary nitrogen excretion and the ratio of urinary energy to digestible energy (DE), while linearly decreased (p<0.05) the ratio of metabolizable energy (ME) to DE and tended to linearly decrease dietary ME (p = 0.066) and NE (p = 0.074). The coefficient of variation for the NE of SBM was lower at a 15% substitution level compared to a 30% substitution level. The nutritional compositions of SBM are influenced by the soybean sources and processing methods. As dry matter basis, NE values of SBM ranged from 11.1 to 12.7 MJ/kg and the best-fitted prediction equation for NE of SBM was: NE (MJ/kg) = −91.71+5.35×gross energy (%)−0.03×neutral detergent fiber (%; R2 = 0.96).Conclusion: A substitution level of 15% was more appropriate to determine NE of SBM. Furthermore, NE values of SBM can be predicted based on their chemical compositions.