Dietary monoglyceride supplementation to support intestinal integrity and host defenses in health-challenged weanling pigs

Frequent incidence of post-weaning enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) diarrhea in the swine industry contributes to high mortality rates and associated economic losses. In this study, a combination of butyric, caprylic, and capric fatty acid monoglycerides was investigated to promote intestinal integrity and host defenses in weanling pigs infected with ETEC. A total of 160 pigs were allotted to treatment groups based on weight and sex. Throughout the 17-d study, 3 treatment groups were maintained: sham-inoculated pigs fed a control diet [uninfected control (UC), n = 40], ETEC-inoculated pigs fed the same control diet [infected control (IC), n = 60], and ETEC-inoculated pigs fed the control diet supplemented with monoglycerides included at 0.3% of the diet [infected supplemented (MG), n = 60]. After a 7-d acclimation period, pigs were orally inoculated on each of 3 consecutive days with either 3 mL of a sham-control (saline) or live ETEC culture (3 x 10(9) colony-forming units/mL). The first day of inoculations was designated as 0 d post-inoculation (DPI), and all study outcomes reference this time-point. Fecal, tissue, and blood samples were collected from 48 individual pigs (UC, n = 12; IC, n = 18; MG, n = 18) on 5 and 10 DPI for analysis of dry matter (DM), bacterial enumeration, inflammatory markers, and intestinal permeability. ETEC-inoculated pigs in both the IC and MG groups exhibited clear signs of infection including lower (P < 0.05) gain:feed and fecal DM, indicative of excess water in the feces, and elevated (P < 0.05) rectal temperatures, total bacteria, total E. coli, and total F18 ETEC during the peak infection period (5 DPI). Reduced (P < 0.05) expression of the occludin, tumor necrosis factor alpha, and vascular endothelial growth factor A genes was observed in both ETEC-inoculated groups at the 5 DPI time-point. There were no meaningful differences between treatments for any of the outcomes measured at 10 DPI. Overall, all significant changes were the result of the ETEC infection, not monoglyceride supplementation.