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. 2021 Oct 1;99(10):skab257.
doi: 10.1093/jas/skab257.

Inulin and isomalto-oligosaccharide alleviate constipation and improve reproductive performance by modulating motility-related hormones, short-chain fatty acids, and feces microflora in pregnant sows

Xiaorong Yu  1 , Chunsheng Fu  1 , Zhenchuan Cui  1 , Guangyong Chen  1 , Yinglei Xu  1 , Caimei Yang  1
Affiliations

Inulin and isomalto-oligosaccharide alleviate constipation and improve reproductive performance by modulating motility-related hormones, short-chain fatty acids, and feces microflora in pregnant sows

Xiaorong Yu et al. J Anim Sci. .

Abstract

Constipation in gestating and lactating sows is common and the inclusion of dietary fiber may help to alleviate this problem. We investigated the effects of inulin (INU) and isomalto-oligosaccharide (IMO), two sources of soluble dietary fiber, on gastrointestinal motility-related hormones, short-chain fatty acids (SCFA), fecal microflora, and reproductive performance in pregnant sows. On day 64 of gestation, 30 sows were randomly divided into three groups and fed as follows: a basal diet, a basal diet with 0.5% INU, and a basal diet with 0.5% IMO. We found that INU and IMO significantly modulated the levels of gastrointestinal motility-related hormones, as evidenced by an increase in substance P (P < 0.05), and a decrease in the vasoactive intestinal peptide concentrations (P < 0.05), indicating the capacity of INU and IMO to alleviate constipation. Furthermore, IMO enhanced the concentrations of acetic, propionic, isobutyric, butyric, isovaleric, and valeric acids in the feces (P < 0.05). High-throughput sequencing showed that IMO and INU increased the fecal microflora α- and β-diversity (P < 0.05). Methanobrevibacter was more abundant (P < 0.05), whereas the richness of Turicibacter was lower in the INU and IMO groups than in the control group (P < 0.05). In addition, IMO significantly increased litter size (P < 0.05). Overall, our findings indicate that INU and IMO can relieve constipation, optimize intestinal flora, and promote reproductive performance in pregnant sows.

Keywords: constipation alleviation; inulin; isomalto-oligosaccharide; reproductive performance; sows.

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Effect of inulin and isomalto-oligosaccharide on neurotransmitter content in sows: the content of SP, VIP, CGRP, and MTL in sow serum, respectively. NCO represents control sows; INU represents sows fed with inulin; IMO represents sows fed with isomalto-oligosaccharide. Different letters indicate a significant difference at P < 0.05.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Effect of inulin and isomalto-oligosaccharide on antioxidant capacity in sows: the content of CAT and SOD in sow serum, respectively. NCO represents control sows; INU represents sows fed with inulin; IMO represents sows fed with isomalto-oligosaccharide. Different letters indicate a significant difference at P< 0.05.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Effect of inulin and isomalto-oligosaccharide on volatile fatty acids in feces content of sows: the content of acetic acid, propionic acid, isobutyric acid, butyric acid, isovaleric acid, and valeric acid in sow feces content, respectively. NCO represents control sows; INU represents sows fed with inulin; IMO represents sows fed with isomalto-oligosaccharide. Different letters indicate a significant difference at P < 0.05.
Figure 4.
Figure 4.
Summary of the microbial community in the feces contents of sows. (A) Venn diagram summarizing the numbers of common and unique operational taxonomic units (OTUs) in the microflora community in the feces contents of sows. (B) Shannon index, reflecting species diversity within and between groups. (C) β-OTU index, reflecting species diversity within and between groups. (D–M) Top 10 taxa with differences in relative abundance between groups (phylum, family, genus, and species levels). (N) Tax4Fun function predictive analysis of inulin and isomalto-oligosaccharide on sow fecal flora.
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