Effects of dietary resveratrol supplementation during gestation and lactation of sows on milk composition of sows and fat metabolism of sucking piglets

Polyphenols and Lactation: Molecular Evidence to Support the Use of Botanical Galactagogues

Botanicals and herbal supplements contain a diverse array of polyphenols that may affect mammary gland function and promote galactagogue activity. This scoping review is conducted to identify scientific literature elucidating how polyphenols affect mammary gland biology and cellular mechanisms critical for lactation. A literature search of PubMed and Medline reviews relevant studies in dairy animals, rodent models, and cultured mammary epithelial cells that are published from January 2010 until July 2023, to ascertain effects of polyphenols on mechanisms regulating milk production and composition. The PRISMA-ScR (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses for Scoping Review) strategy is applied and 80 studies on polyphenols and their implications on milk production and composition are included in this review. Limited information delineating effects of polyphenols on the molecular pathways that affect lactation are found, although available information suggests modulation of Stat5 signaling/differentiation, Stat3 signaling/remodeling, mTOR and insulin signaling/energy production, and nuclear factor kappa beta (NFκβ) signaling/oxidative stress and inflammation may play roles. A profound lack of mechanistic information underscores the critical need for further research to understand the impact of botanical supplements and polyphenols on milk production and composition in humans to establish maternal nutritional guidelines to support lactation and breastfeeding goals.

How Does Nutrition Affect the Epigenetic Changes in Dairy Cows?

Dairy cows require a balanced diet that provides enough nutrients to support milk production, growth, and reproduction. Inadequate nutrition can lead to metabolic disorders, impaired fertility, and reduced milk yield. Recent studies have shown that nutrition can affect epigenetic modifications in dairy cows, which can impact gene expression and affect the cows' health and productivity. One of the most important epigenetic modifications in dairy cows is DNA methylation, which involves the addition of a methyl group to the DNA molecule. Studies have shown that the methylation status of certain genes in dairy cows can be influenced by dietary factors such as the level of methionine, lysine, choline, and folate in the diet. Other important epigenetic modifications in dairy cows are histone modification and microRNAs as regulators of gene expression. Overall, these findings suggest that nutrition can have a significant impact on the epigenetic regulation of gene expression in dairy cows. By optimizing the diet of dairy cows, it may be possible to improve their health and productivity by promoting beneficial epigenetic modifications. This paper reviews the main nutrients that can cause epigenetic changes in dairy cattle by analyzing the effect of diet on milk production and its composition.

Resveratrol alleviates oxidative stress induced by oxidized soybean oil and improves gut function via changing gut microbiota in weaned piglets

BACKGROUND

Oxidized soybean oil (OSO) has been shown to impair growth and exacerbate inflammation, leading to intestinal barrier injury in animals. Recent evidence suggests important roles for resveratrol (RES) in the promoting growth performance, antioxidant capacity, anti-inflammatory, and regulate intestinal barriers in animals. Therefore, The objectives of this study are to investigate the effects of dietary RES (purity 98%) supplementation on the growth performance, antioxidant capacity, inflammatory state, and intestinal function of weaned piglets challenged with OSO.

METHODS

A total of 28 castrated weaned male piglets with a similar body weight of 10.19 ± 0.10 kg were randomly assigned to 4 dietary treatments for 28-d feeding trial with 7 replications per treatment and 1 piglet per replicate. Treatments were arranged as a 2 × 2 factorial with oil type [3% fresh soybean oil (FSO) vs. 3% OSO] and dietary RES (0 vs. 300 mg/kg).

RESULTS

The results showed that relative to the FSO group, OSO stress tended to decrease the average daily feed intake (ADFI), and decreased the activity levels of lipase, villus/crypt ratio (VCR), the mRNA expression of FABP1, SOD2, IL-10 and ZO-1 in the jejunum, and SOD2, GPX1, occludin and ZO-1 in the colon, the levels of acetic acid in the colonic digesta, whereas up-regulated the mRNA expression of IL-1β and TNF-α in the jejunum (P < 0.05). Moreover, dietary supplementation with RES increased ether extract (EE), the activity levels of sucrase, lipase, α-amylase, villus height (VH) and VCR, the mRNA expression of FABP1, SOD2, IL-10 and occludin in the jejunum, and FABP1, PPAR-γ, GPX1, occludin and ZO-1 in the colon, and the abundance of Firmicutes, acetic and propionic acid, but decreased the levels of D-lactic acid in the plasma, the abundance of Bacteroidetes in the colonic digesta of weaned piglets compared to the non-RES group (P < 0.05). Meanwhile, in the interaction effect analysis, relative to the OSO group, dietary RES supplementation in the diets supplemented with OSO increased the activity levels of trypsin, VH in the jejunum, the abundance of Actinobacteria, the levels of butyric acid of weaned piglets, but failed to influence the activity levels of trypsin and VH, Actinobacteria abundance, the levels of butyric acid when diets were supplemented with FSO (interaction, P < 0.05). Relative to the OSO group, dietary RES supplementation in the diets supplemented with OSO decreased the activity levels of DAO in the plasma of weaned piglets but failed to influence the activity levels of DAO when diets were supplemented with FSO (interaction, P < 0.05). Relative to the FSO group, dietary RES supplementation in the diets supplemented with FSO decreased the level of propionic acid, whereas RES supplementation failed to influence the level of propionic acid when the diet was supplemented with OSO (interaction, P < 0.01).

CONCLUSIONS

Inclusion of OSO intensified inflammatory states and impaired the intestinal health characteristics of weaned piglets. Dietary RES supplementation improved the antioxidant capacity, anti-inflammatory activity, and intestinal morphology. Further studies showed that the protective effects of RES on gut health could be linked to the decreased abundance of Prevotella_1, Clostridium_sensu_stricto_6, and Prevotellaceae_UCG003 and increased levels of acetic and propionic acid.

Biological function of resveratrol and its application in animal production: a review

With the prohibition of antibiotics in feed, plant functional substances have been widely studied as feed additives. Resveratrol, a natural stilbene, and a non-flavonoid polyphenol found in plants, possesses antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and metabolic regulatory features. Resveratrol generated intense scientific and public interest, primarily due to its widely reported ability to prevent cancer, delay aging and alleviate related metabolic diseases. Recently, resveratrol has been studied and applied as a feed additive in animal production. This review focuses on the outline of the absorption and metabolism and biological functions of resveratrol and summarizes the application of dietary resveratrol in animal production up to the present, including pigs, poultry, and ruminants. In pigs, dietary resveratrol improved intestinal health, mitochondrial function, meat quality, and more. In poultry, studies have shown that dietary resveratrol improves growth performance and meat and egg quality and alleviates heat stress induced adverse effects. There are few studies on dietary resveratrol in ruminants; however previous studies have indicated that dietary resveratrol increases nutrient digestibility and reduces methane emissions in sheep. It is hoped that this review could provide a specific theoretical basis and research ideas for the research and application of resveratrol.

The effect of resveratrol in cardio-metabolic disorders during pregnancy and offspring outcomes: a review

Resveratrol supplementation during pregnancy and lactation has been associated with a reduced risk of maternal obesity, gestational diabetes mellitus , and preeclampsia. In addition, emerging evidence has shown that maternal resveratrol supplementation diminishes cardio-metabolic disorders in offspring, highlighting its role in modulating adaptative responses involving phenotypical plasticity. Therefore, it is reasonable to infer that administration of resveratrol during pregnancy and lactation periods could be considered an important nutritional intervention to decrease the risk of maternal and offspring cardio-metabolic disorders. To highlight these new insights, this literature review will summarize the understanding emerging from experimental and clinical studies about resveratrol supplementation and its capacity to prevent or minimize maternal and offspring cardio-metabolic disorders.

Effect of Resveratrol on Pregnancy, Prenatal Complications and Pregnancy-Associated Structure Alterations

Adverse pregnancy outcomes are considered significant health risks for pregnant women and their offspring during pregnancy and throughout their lifespan. These outcomes lead to a perturbated in-utero environment that impacts critical phases of the fetus's life and correlates to an increased risk of chronic pathological conditions, such as diabetes, obesity, and cardiovascular diseases, in both the mother's and adult offspring's life. The dietary intake of naturally occurring antioxidants promotes health benefits and disease prevention. In this regard, maternal dietary intake of polyphenolic antioxidants is linked to a reduced risk of maternal obesity and cardio-metabolic disorders, positively affecting both the fetus and offspring. In this work, we will gather and critically appraise the current literature highlighting the effect/s of the naturally occurring polyphenol antioxidant resveratrol on oxidative stress, inflammation, and other molecular and physiological phenomena associated with pregnancy and pregnancy conditions, such as gestational diabetes, preeclampsia, and preterm labor. The resveratrol impact on prenatal complications and pregnancy-associated structures, such as the fetus and placenta, will also be discussed. Finally, we will draw conclusions from the current knowledge and provide future perspectives on potentially exploiting resveratrol as a therapeutic tool in pregnancy-associated conditions.

Effects of oxidized soybean oil on the performance of sows and jejunum health of suckling piglets

Oils provide a considerable amount of energy to the swine diet, but they are prone to lipid oxidation if not properly preserved. Consumption of oxidized oils can adversely affect the animal organism and even the offspring. This study investigated the impact of oxidized soybean oil in the diets of sows from 107 days gestation to 21 days of lactation on the performance of sows and jejunum health of suckling piglets. Sixteen sows were randomly allocated into two groups: one group (n = 8) was fed with the fresh soybean oil (FSO) diet, and another group (n = 8) was treated with the oxidized soybean oil (OSO) diet. Dietary oxidized soybean oil does not affect sow performance. Antioxidant enzyme activity in the milk was reduced significantly in the OSO group, such as the superoxide dismutase (SOD), total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC), and catalase (CAT) activities (p < 0.05). On Day 21, oxidized soybean oil increased tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin 6 (IL-6), and interleukin 8 (IL-8) levels in sow milk and the concentrations of TNF-α and IL-8 cytokines in plasma (p < 0.05). Suckling piglets from sows fed on OSO showed a trend towards increased IL-6 and TNF-α in plasma (p < 0.1). The mRNA expression of interleukin 1β (IL-1β) was augmented, whereas interleukin 10 (IL-10) was decreased, and zonula occludens-1 (ZO-1) had a tendency to be down-regulated in OSO treatment. This study revealed that the OSO of feed decreased the antioxidant capacity of milk, further contributing to the inflammatory response in the jejunum of suckling piglets.

Plant-derived polyphenols in sow nutrition: An update

Oxidative stress is a potentially critical factor that affects productive performance in gestating and lactating sows. Polyphenols are a large class of plant secondary metabolites that possess robust antioxidant capacity. All polyphenols are structurally characterized by aromatic rings with multiple hydrogen hydroxyl groups; those make polyphenols perfect hydrogen atoms and electron donors to neutralize free radicals and other reactive oxygen species. In the past decade, increasing attention has been paid to polyphenols as functional feed additives for sows. Polyphenols have been found to alleviate inflammation and oxidative stress in sows, boost their reproductivity, and promote offspring growth and development. In this review, we provided a systematical summary of the latest research advances in plant-derived polyphenols in sow nutrition, and mainly focused on the effects of polyphenols on the (1) antioxidant and immune functions of sows, (2) placental functions and the growth and development of fetal piglets, (3) mammary gland functions and the growth and development of suckling piglets, and (4) the long-term growth and development of progeny pigs. The output of this review provides an important foundation, from more than 8,000 identified plant phenols, to screen potential polyphenols (or polyphenol-enriched plants) as functional feed additives suitable for gestating and lactating sows.

Maternal resveratrol regulates the growth performance, antioxidant capacity, and intestinal health of suckling piglets through intestinal microorganisms at high summer temperatures

Background

Resveratrol has numerous beneficial properties, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and immunomodulatory properties. High summer temperatures in Southern China affect the reproductive performance of sows. The present study aimed to investigate the effects of dietary resveratrol supplementation in different thermal environments on the reproductive performance, antioxidant capacity, immune function, and intestinal microbes of sows and piglets during late gestation and lactation, as well as their relationship with colostrum immunoglobulin.

Methods

A two-phase experiment was conducted with 40 healthy multiparous sows. In the first phase of the experiment, 20 sows were used in a moderate temperature environment, and in the second phase of the experiment, the remaining 20 sows were used in a high-temperature environment. In both phases, sows were fed either a control diet or a diet consists of control diet and 300 mg/kg resveratrol starting on day 75 of gestation. Plasma, milk, and fecal samples were collected to obtain the indices of antioxidant capacity, immune function, and intestinal microbes.

Results

The results showed that resveratrol supplementation increased the number of live births by 13.24 and 26.79% in the first and second phases, respectively, compared with the control group. In the second phase, resveratrol supplementation increased litter weight at weaning and in the concentrations of growth hormone (GH), insulin (INS), progesterone (PROG), triglycerides, and uric acid (UA). The plasma superoxide dismutase (SOD) level on day 110 of gestation and day 14 of lactation, as well as glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) on day 14 of lactation in the first phase, showed an increasing trend (p = 0.0728, p = 0.0932, and p = 0.067, respectively) in the resveratrol group, compared with the control group. On day 14 of lactation, the plasma total antioxidant capability (T-AOC) level was higher in the second phase, while the plasma malondialdehyde (MDA) level was lower in both phases in the resveratrol group. Resveratrol supplementation increased the abundance of immunoglobulin A (IgA), immunoglobulin G (IgG), and immunoglobulin M (IgM) in colostrum and the relative abundance of Lactobacillus and Alloprevotella but decreased the relative abundance of Escherichia-shigella in piglet feces in the second phase. In addition, Spearman's correlation analysis indicated that the weight gain of weaned piglets was positively (p < 0.05) associated with IgM content in colostrum and the abundance of Lactobacillus in the fecal microbiota of piglets in the second phase. Moreover, the abundance of Alloprevotella was positively correlated with the contents of IgA and IgG in colostrum, while the abundance of Lactobacillus was positively correlated with IgM content.

Conclusion

These findings indicated that maternal resveratrol supplementation could enhance the growth performance, antioxidant capacity, and intestinal health of piglets in a high temperature environment, which might be associated with increased immunoglobin secretion from colostrum.

Maternal pyrimidine nucleoside supplementation regulates fatty acid, amino acid and glucose metabolism of offspring

Pyrimidine nucleosides (PN) are abundant in mammalian milk and mainly involved in glycogen deposition and lipid metabolism. To investigate the effects of maternal supplementation with pyrimidine nucleoside on glucose, fatty acids (FAs), and amino acids (AAs) metabolism in neonatal piglets. Forty pregnant sows were randomly assigned into the control (CON) group (fed a basal diet, n = 20) or the PN group (fed a basal diet supplemented with PN at 150 g/t, n = 20). Litter size, born alive and birth litter weight were recorded. The serum and placenta of sows, and jejunum and liver of neonatal piglets were sampled. The results indicated that supplementing sow diets with PN decreased birth mortality and increased the birth weight of piglets (P < 0.05). In addition, neonates from sows supplemented with PN had higher glucose levels in serum and liver compared with the CON group (P < 0.05). Moreover, maternal PN supplementation regulated the ratio of saturated FAs and polyunsaturated FAs, and AAs content in serum and liver of piglets (P < 0.05). Furthermore, an up-regulation of mRNA expression of genes related to glucose and AA transport were observed in the neonatal jejunum from the PN group (P < 0.05). Additionally, hepatic protein expressions of phosphorylated hormone-sensitive lipase (P-HSL), HSL, sterol regulatory element-binding transcription factor 1c (SREBP-1c), and phosphorylated protein kinase B (P-AKT) was higher in the piglets from the PN group than the CON group (P < 0.05). Together, maternal PN supplementation may regulate nutrient metabolism of neonatal piglets by modulating the gene expression of glucose and AA transporters in placenta and jejunum, and the gene and protein expression of key enzymes related to lipid metabolism in liver of neonatal piglets, which may improve the reproductive performance of sows.

Lycopene improves maternal reproductive performance by modulating milk composition and placental antioxidative and immune status

Placental health and milk quality are important for maternal reproductive performance during pregnancy and lactation. Lycopene plays an important role in antioxidation, anti-inflammation and regulating lipid metabolism. The goal of the present study was to investigate the effects of dietary lycopene supplementation in the pig model on reproductive performance, placental health and milk composition during maternal gestation and lactation. In the present study, the litter size of live piglets was increased and the litter size of dead piglets was decreased by lycopene supplementation of the diet of sows. The litter weight at birth and weaning were increased in the lycopene group. Through placental proteomics, we enriched differentially expressed proteins (DEPs), gene ontology (GO) terms, and Kyoto encyclopedia of proteins and genomes (KEGG) pathways involved in immunity, anti-inflammation, antioxidants, and lipid metabolism and transport. Furthermore, in terms of placental health, we analyzed the levels of related enzymes, metabolites and mRNA expression in the placenta. Lycopene was shown to reduce mRNA expression and the levels of placental inflammatory factors, increase the content of immunoglobulin, improve the antioxidant capacity, and improve lipid metabolism and lipid transport in the placenta. In terms of sow milk composition, lycopene increased the levels of immunoglobulins in colostrum and lactose in colostrum and milk. Overall, the results of the present study demonstrate that dietary lycopene supplementation of sows during gestation and lactation improves the reproductive performance to a certain extent; this may be due to lycopene improving the placental health and milk composition of sows.

Lycopene modulates lipid metabolism in rats and their offspring under a high-fat diet

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of lycopene supplementation on lipid metabolism in rats and their offspring. The experiment was conducted on 60 female rats divided into four groups: normal diet, normal diet with 200 mg kg^-1 lycopene, high-fat diet, and high-fat diet with 200 mg kg^-1 lycopene. The plasma levels of TG, LDL-C, AST and ALT in female rats fed a high-fat diet were significantly increased (P < 0.05). Lycopene supplementation reduced the plasma TG, LEP and AST levels (P < 0.05). In addition, the activity of ACC and mRNA expression of SREBP1c, FAS, PPARγ, CPT1, HMGCR, ACC, PLIN1 and FATP1 in the liver were also increased after feeding a high-fat diet (P < 0.05), whereas the expression of HSL was decreased (P < 0.05). Lycopene increased the activity of HSL and the expression of ATGL in the liver (P < 0.05), and the activity of ACC and mRNA expression of HMGCR and ACC were decreased (P < 0.05). For the offspring, maternal feeding of a high-fat diet reduced the plasma HDL-C levels (P < 0.05), but lycopene supplementation reduced the plasma TC levels (P < 0.05). Maternal high-fat diet also decreased the activity of HSL and the expression of CD36, PLIN1 and FATP1 in the liver while increasing the expression of PPARγ (P < 0.05). Maternal lycopene supplementation decreased the activities of ACC and FAS in the liver and decreased the expression of PPARγ, ACC and PLIN1 (P < 0.05). Maternal feeding of a high-fat diet increased the level of oxidative stress in the liver, the level of blood lipids in plasma and the rate of lipid production in the liver of rats and their offspring. Maternal lycopene supplementation can reduce the level of oxidative stress in rats and their offspring, reduce the level of blood lipids in plasma, and also reduce the rate of lipid production in the liver of rats and offspring.

Resveratrol Attenuates Diquat-Induced Oxidative Stress by Regulating Gut Microbiota and Metabolome Characteristics in Piglets

Previous studies have shown that dietary resveratrol (RES) reduces diarrhea and attenuates oxidative stress in piglets challenged with diquat. However, the effect of dietary resveratrol on the gut microbiota of these piglets, as well as the potential relationships between intestinal microflora and metabolites, remain unclear. Here, 16S ribosomal DNA sequencing and metabolome analyses were performed to investigate the effect of RES on the gut microbiota and metabolome of diquat-challenged piglets. A total of 18 weaned piglets (aged 28 ± 2 days) were divided into the control group (basal diet), diquat group (basal diet + diquat challenge), and RES group (basal diet containing 90 mg/kg RES + diquat challenge). Compared with the control group, piglets in the diquat group showed enriched relative abundance of the phyla Firmicutes and Actinobacteria, the genus Ruminococcaceae UCG-005, and members of the Eubacterium coprostanoligenes group. Noteworthy, RES supplementation significantly reduced the levels of these microorganisms. In contrast, the relative abundance of some beneficial bacterial species in the RES group, such as the genera Clostridium sensu stricto 1 and Lachnospiraceae unclassified were significantly higher than in the diquat and control groups. Metabolomic analysis indicated that some metabolites, including indole-3-carbinol, 5-hydroxyindole-3-acetic acid, and uridine, were significantly upregulated upon RES supplementation. In particular, the relative abundance of uridine, indole, and alpha- and beta-dihydroresveratrol was significantly higher in the RES group than in the control group. Moreover, most gut bacterial genera were found to be highly correlated with altered gut microbiota-related metabolites. These findings suggest that dietary supplementation with resveratrol may alter the composition and metabolites of colonic microbiota in diquat-challenged piglets, which provides important insights into the use of resveratrol as a feed additive for gut microbial regulation in piglets with inflammatory and oxidative stress-associated disorders.

Management and Feeding Strategies in Early Life to Increase Piglet Performance and Welfare around Weaning: A Review

The performance of piglets in nurseries may vary depending on body weight, age at weaning, management, and pathogenic load in the pig facilities. The early events in a pig's life are very important and may have long lasting consequences, since growth lag involves a significant cost to the system due to reduced market weights and increased barn occupancy. The present review evidences that there are several strategies that can be used to improve the performance and welfare of pigs at weaning. A complex set of early management and dietary strategies have been explored in sows and suckling piglets for achieving optimum and efficient growth of piglets after weaning. The management strategies studied to improve development and animal welfare include: (1) improving sow housing during gestation, (2) reducing pain during farrowing, (3) facilitating an early and sufficient colostrum intake, (4) promoting an early social interaction between litters, and (5) providing complementary feed during lactation. Dietary strategies for sows and suckling piglets aim to: (1) enhance fetal growth (arginine, folate, betaine, vitamin B12, carnitine, chromium, and zinc), (2) increase colostrum and milk production (DL-methionine, DL-2-hydroxy-4-methylthiobutanoic acid, arginine, L-carnitine, tryptophan, valine, vitamin E, and phytogenic actives), (3) modulate sows' oxidative and inflammation status (polyunsaturated fatty acids, vitamin E, selenium, phytogenic actives, and spray dried plasma), (4) allow early microbial colonization (probiotics), or (5) supply conditionally essential nutrients (nucleotides, glutamate, glutamine, threonine, and tryptophan).

Effects of dietary resveratrol supplementation in sows on antioxidative status, myofiber characteristic and meat quality of offspring

This study investigated the influence of dietary resveratrol (300 mg/kg) supplementation in sows on the antioxidative status, myofiber characteristic and meat quality of their progeny. Results showed that maternal dietary resveratrol supplementation increased (P < 0.05) the backfat thickness and tended (P = 0.055) to increase the intramuscular fat of finishing pigs. The drip loss and lactic acid level were reduced, and the pH_{24 h} of longissimus thoracis was increased by maternal dietary resveratrol supplementation (P < 0.05). Maternal dietary resveratrol supplementation increased the mRNA and protein expression of MyHC I and decreased the mRNA and protein expression of MyHC IIb in the longissimus thoracis (P < 0.05). The malonaldehyde (MDA) level in longissimus thoracis was reduced and the superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity and SOD2 mRNA expression were increased by maternal dietary resveratrol supplementation (P < 0.05). In conclusion, dietary resveratrol supplementation in sows improves the meat quality of offspring by altering the myofiber characteristic and antioxidative status.

Long-term effects of maternal resveratrol intake during lactation on cholesterol metabolism in male rat offspring

Resveratrol (RSV) can protect against non-communicable diseases by improving cholesterol metabolism. However, it is unclear that effects of maternal RSV intake on health of adult offspring. In this study, we examined effects of maternal RSV intake during lactation on cholesterol metabolism in adult male rat offspring. Female Wistar rats were fed a control diet (CON) supplemented with or without RSV (20 mg/kg body weight/day) during their lactation period. Male offspring were weaned onto a standard diet and maintained on this diet for 36 weeks. As a result, plasma cholesterol level significantly decreased in RSV offspring compared to CON offspring. Furthermore, a decrease in hepatic 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase level and an increase in hepatic LDL-receptor level were observed in the RSV offspring. These results indicate that maternal RSV intake causes long-term decrease in plasma cholesterol level in the offspring through suppression of hepatic cholesterol biosynthesis and promotion of hepatic cholesterol uptake.