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Effect of mannan oligosaccharides on growth performance of weanling pigs¹

Department of Animal Sciences, Louisiana State University Agricultural Center, Baton Rouge 70803-4210

	Abstract

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Four experiments were conducted to evaluate the effects of mannan oligosaccharides (provided by Bio-Mos [BM], a product containing a minimum of 28% glucomannoprotein from S. cerevisiae) on growth performance of nursery pigs. Treatments were replicated with five to six pens of four to five pigs each. Initial BW ranged from 4.7 to 5.4 kg, and pigs were weaned at 16 to 20 d of age. Experiments 1, 2, and 4 consisted of Phase 1 (7 to 8 d), Phase 2 (12 to 14 d), and Phase 3 (7 to 8 d) periods, but Exp. 3 consisted only of Phase 1 (7 d) and 2 (14 d) periods. The diets for Phase 1, 2, and 3 contained 1.6, 1.5, and 1.1% Lys, respectively. The treatments in Exp. 1 were 0, 0.20, and 0.30% BM, which did not affect growth performance. The treatments in Exp. 2 were two levels of excess Zn (0 and 3,000 ppm) and three levels of BM (0, 0.20, and 0.30%) in a 2 x 3 factorial. Excess Zn increased (P < 0.08) ADG and ADFI in Phase 2 and 3 and overall. The 0.20% BM addition increased ADG (Phase 3 and overall) and ADFI (Phase 2 and overall) in the absence of excess Zn but did not affect or decreased these response variables in the presence of excess Zn (Zn x BM quadratic, P < 0.08). Experiment 3 was similar to Exp. 2, but the 0.30% BM addition was not used. Excess Zn decreased (P < 0.09) ADG in Phase 1 but increased (P < 0.09) ADG and ADFI in Phase 2. The BM decreased (P < 0.03) overall ADFI but increased Phase 2 and overall ADG and gain:feed (GF) in the absence of excess Zn but not in the presence of excess Zn (Zn x BM, P < 0.07). The BM decreased ADFI during Phase 2, but the decrease was greater in pigs fed excess Zn (Zn x BM, P < 0.07). Experiment 4 evaluated the interactive effects of the antibiotic (oxytetracycline and neomycin) and BM and of Zn and BM. Antibiotic (no excess Zn) increased (P < 0.01) ADG and ADFI in Phases 2 and 3 and overall. The BM addition decreased ADG and GF in Phase 2 when the antibiotic was not in the diet but increased ADG when the antibiotic was in the diet (antibiotic x BM, P < 0.05). Excess Zn increased (P < 0.07) ADG and ADFI during Phases 2 and 3 and overall. In Phase 2, the 0.20% BM decreased GF when excess Zn was not added to the diet but increased GF when Zn was included (Zn x BM, P < 0.03). Mannan oligosaccharides improved pig performance in some instances during Phase 2 when fed in combination with an antibiotic and no excess dietary Zn, but it had no effect or negative effects in the presence of excess Zn or in the absence of an antibiotic.

Key Words: Growth • Mannans • Oligosaccharides • Pigs • Zinc

	Introduction

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An increased emphasis on reducing the use of antibiotics and excess levels of minerals in animal feeds is occuring. Because of the potential negative environmental and health issues that these dietary additives pose (Cromwell, 2001; Kornegay and Verstegen, 2001), other methods and dietary additives to improve swine production efficiency are being considered.

During the nursery phase of production, diets containing antibiotics and excess Zn (excess Zn refers to dietary levels much greater than the requirement of 100 ppm) are fed to maximize growth performance (Cromwell, 2001; Maxwell and Carter, 2001). Mannan oligosaccharides (MOS) may offer an alternative to these traditional ingredients resulting in equal or better growth performance of nursery pigs (Davis et al., 2002). The MOS may contribute to improved growth performance through two possible modes of action. The MOS bind to cell walls of bacteria preventing the bacteria from attaching to intestinal epithelial cells (Spring et al., 2000). In addition, MOS may enhance the immune system by evoking a direct antibody response (Newman and Newman, 2001; O’Quinn et al., 2001). Dvorak and Jacques (1998) reported that pigs fed 0.20% Bio-Mos (BM) had improved growth performance. Similarly, Davis et al. (2000, 2002) reported that growth performance was improved during some phases of the nursery period by the addition of 0.20% BM, but the response was dependent on the level of Cu or Zn in the diet. Newman and Newman (2001) and O’Quinn et al. (2001) reported that nursing pigs grew faster if their dams received MOS supplementation 14 to 21 d before farrowing and during lactation. White et al. (2002), on the other hand, reported that MOS from brewer’s dried yeast had no effect on nursery pig performance.

Therefore, the following experiments were conducted to further evaluate the effect of MOS, excess dietary Zn, and/or an antibiotic on growth performance of weanling pigs.

	Materials and Methods

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Four experiments were conducted at the Louisiana State University Agricultural Center Swine Facility. The materials and methods used in these experiments were approved by the Louisiana State University Agricultural Center Animal Care and Use Committee.

In all experiments, Yorkshire x Landrace or Yorkshire x Landrace x Duroc barrows, boars, or gilts were allotted to treatments in randomized complete block designs on the basis of weight. Gender was equalized within pens, and ancestry was equalized within treatment, as much as possible. Pigs were housed in an environmentally controlled nursery in 0.97- x 1.47-m pens with hard plastic completely slotted flooring. Average daily gain, ADFI, and gain:feed data were determined weekly. In each experiment, pigs were fed diets (Table 1) formulated to contain 1.60%, 1.50%, or 1.10% lysine in Phases 1, 2, and 3, respectively and to meet or exceed the nutritional requirements (NRC, 1998) of pigs during the nursery period. Pigs and their environment were monitored at least twice daily. Throughout the experiment pigs were given ad libitum access to treatment diets and water.

In Exp. 2, 150 weanling barrows and gilts were allotted to six treatments in a 2 x 3 factorial arrangement. Three levels of BM (0, 0.20, and 0.30%) and two levels of Zn (as ZnO; 0 and 3,000 ppm) were used. The antibiotic (oxytetracycline and neomycin) was included in each diet, and cornstarch and sand replaced BM and Zn, respectively. Average initial age of pigs was 17 d, and average initial and final BW were 5.4 and 13.8 kg, respectively. Each treatment was replicated with five pens of five pigs each except for the treatment with 3,000 ppm Zn and 0% BM, which had four replicates. The experimental period was 28 d. Pigs were fed the Phase 1, 2, and 3 diets for 7, 14, and 7 d, respectively (Table 1).

Experiment 3 again evaluated BM (0 or 0.20%) and Zn (0 or 3,000 ppm as ZnO) in a 2 x 2 factorial arrangement with 100 weanling barrows and gilts. All diets contained an antibiotic (oxytetracycline and neomycin) and cornstarch and sand replaced BM and ZnO, respectively. Average initial age of pigs was 16 d, and average initial and final BW were 4.9 and 9.9 kg, respectively. Each treatment was replicated with five pens of five pigs each. The experimental period was 21 d. Pigs were fed the Phase 1 and 2 diets for 7 and 14 d, respectively (Table 1).

Experiment 4 will be presented and analyzed as two trials, but they were conducted simultaneously, and a common basal and basal plus 0.20% BM diet were shared by the two trials. One hundred twenty weanling pigs were allotted to six dietary treatments. Trial 1 consisted of a 2 x 2 factorial arrangement of treatments with two levels of antibiotic (0 and 0.75%; Neo-Terra 10/10, oxytetracycline, and neomycin) and two levels of BM (0 and 0.20%). Trial 2 consisted of a 2 x 2 factorial arrangement of treatments with two levels of excess dietary Zn (0 and 3,000 ppm) and two levels of BM (0 and 0.20%). Cornstarch was added in place of antibiotic, BM, or Zn when appropriate. Average initial age of the pigs was 18 d, and average initial and final BW were 4.7 and 14.1 kg, respectively. Each treatment was replicated with five pens of four pigs each. The experimental period was 27 d. Pigs were fed the Phase 1, 2, and 3 diets for 7, 12, and 8 d, respectively.

Statistical Analyses.

Data were analyzed by analysis of variance procedures (Steel and Torrie, 1980) appropriate for randomized complete block designs using the GLM procedure of SAS (SAS Inst. Inc., Cary, NC). Orthogonal single degree of freedom contrasts were used to determine treatment differences, which were considered significant at alpha equal 0.10. The pen of pigs served as the experimental unit for all data.

	Results

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In Exp. 1, BM had no effect on growth performance of pigs during Phase 1, 2, 3, or overall (Table 2).

	Discussion

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Previous studies have reported that MOS supplementation during the nursery phase improves growth performance of pigs (Dvorak and Jacques, 1998; Davis et al., 2002). The rationale for MOS inclusion was that it might be a replacement for antibiotics or excess Zn by altering intestinal microflora or by stimulating the immune system (Spring et al., 2000; Newman and Newman, 2001; O’Quinn et al., 2001), which would result in a decrease in the use of antibiotics in animal diets and decrease Zn excretion to the environment.

The BM addition at 0.20% or 0.30% in Exp.1 did not affect growth performance in any phase of production. The diets used in this experiment contained both an antibiotic and excess dietary Zn. Experiments 2, 3, and 4 were conducted to evaluate BM in the presence or absence of excess Zn or an antibiotic. The results are somewhat inconsistent, but the 0.20% BM addition increased ADG in Phase 2 and in the overall data in Exp. 2. The effect was more pronounced in diets with no excess Zn than in diets with excess Zn. In this experiment, the 0.30% BM addition was not as effective as the 0.20% BM addition. Thus, the 0.20% addition was used in subsequent experiments. The 0.20% BM addition increased ADG and gain:feed in Phase 2 and in the overall data, and again, the response was more pronounced in diets without excess Zn. In fact, in this experiment, the BM addition in the presence of excess Zn reduced pig performance compared with those just fed excess Zn. These results are in agreement with Davis et al. (2000, 2002) who reported that MOS improved growth performance of nursery pigs, but the response was more consistent and favorable if the diet did not contain excess levels of Zn or Cu. The results of Exp. 4, Trial 2, are not in agreement with the two previous experiments. The 0.20% BM addition was effective only in the presence of excess Zn, and the effect was significant only in gain:feed. Recall that in this experiment, the basal diet did not contain an antibiotic.

The antibiotic increased ADG and ADFI in Phases 2, 3, and in the overall data, which is in agreement with numerous reports as indicated in the review by Cromwell (2001). The MOS decreased ADG in Phase 2, when no antibiotic was in the diet, but increased ADG in the presence of the antibiotic. This response may suggest that MOS is dependent on the presence of antibiotic in the diet, which may make the gut microflora more favorable for a positive MOS response.

These data suggest that MOS improves growth performance of weanling pigs during Phase 2 of production, and the response is evident only if excess Zn is not included in the diet and if the diet contains an antibiotic. In contrast to Phase 2, BM did not affect growth performance of pigs during Phase 1. This response was not expected, and because excess Zn generally improves growth performance during Phase 1, the modes of action of Zn and MOS may not be similar. The reason that MOS did not affect growth performance during Phase 1 is not known. It may be that MOS is effective by altering the microflora in the intestine and that it may take at least 1 wk for this change to take place. It would be interesting to evaluate MOS in prewean diets and then determine the effect of MOS during the nursery phase. This initial exposure to MOS in the prewean feed may allow adequate time for changes in the intestinal microflora to take place and then result in a response in the Phase 1 nursery period.

These data suggest that BM, as a source of MOS fed at the 0.20% level, may have some benefit during Phase 2 of the nursery period, when fed in combination with the oxytetracycline-neomycin antibiotics used in these experiments and without excess Zn.

	Implications

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Addition of mannan oligosaccharide to weanling pig diets increased growth performance during Phase 2 of the nursery period but only when an antibiotic was included in the diet and when excess zinc was not included in the diet. Thus, mannan oligosaccharide may have the potential to replace the excess Zn that is commonly added to nursery pig diets during this period of growth and improve swine performance. Further research should be conducted to determine the effect mannan oligosaccharide may have on the environment and growth performance.

	Footnotes

 
¹ Approved for publication by the director of the Louisiana Agric. Exp. Sta. as Publ. No. 02-18-0724.

² Correspondence—phone: 225-578-3449; fax: 225-578-3604;E-mail: lsouthern{at}agctr.lsu.edu.

Received for publication October 18, 2002. Accepted for publication June 2, 2003.

	Literature Cited

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Cromwell, G. L. 2001. Antimicrobial and promicrobial agents. Page 401 in Swine Nutrition 2nd ed. A. J. Lewis and L. L. Southern, ed. Swine Nutrition. CRC Press, Boca Roton, FL.

Davis, M. E., C. V. Maxwell, D. C. Brown, B. Z. de Rodas, Z. B. Johnson, E. B. Kegley, D. H. Hellwig, and R. A. Dvorak. 2002. Effect of dietary mannan oligosaccharide and(or) pharmacological additions of supplemental copper on growth performance and immunocompetence of weanling and growing/finishing pigs. J. Anim. Sci. 80:2887–2894.[Abstract/Free Full Text]

Davis, M. E., C. V. Maxwell, E. B. Kegley, B. Z. de Rodas, K. G. Friesen, D. H. Hellwig, D. C. Brown, and R. A. Dvorak. 2000. Efficacy of mannan oligosaccharide (Bio-Mos®) supplementation with and without zinc oxide on performance and immunocompetence of weanling pigs. J. Anim. Sci. 78(Suppl. 2):61. (Abstr.)

Dvorak, R., and K. A. Jacques. 1998. Mannanoligosaccharide, fructooligosaccharide, and Carbadox for pigs days 0-21 post-weaning. J. Anim. Sci. 76(Suppl. 2):64. (Abstr.)

Kornegay, E. T., and M. W. A Verstegen. Swine nutrition and environmental pollution and odor control. Page 609 in Swine Nutrition 2nd ed. A. J. Lewis and L. L. Southern, eds. Swine Nutrition. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL.

Maxwell, C. V., and S. D. Carter. 2001. Feeding the weaned pig. Page 691 in Swine Nutrition 2nd ed. A. J. Lewis and L. L. Southern, ed. Swine Nutrition. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL.

Newman, K. E., and M. C. Newman. 2001. Evaluation of mannan oligosaccharide on the microflora and immunoglobulin satus of sows and piglet performance. J. Anim. Sci. 79(Suppl. 1)189. (Abstr.)

NRC. 1998. Pages 111–123 in Nutrient Requirements of Swine. 10th rev. ed. Nat. Acad. Press, Washington, DC.

O’Quinn, P. R., D. W. Funderburke, and G. W. Tibetts. 2001. Effects of dietary supplementation with mannan oligosaccharides on sow and litter performance in a commercial production system. J. Anim. Sci. 79(Suppl. 1):212. (Abstr.)

Spring, P., C. Wenk, K. A. Dawson, and K. E. Newman. 2000. The effects of dietary mannanoligosaccharides on cecal parameters and the concentrations of enteric bacteria in the ceca of salmonella-challenged broiler chicks. Poult. Sci. 79:205–211.[Abstract/Free Full Text]

Steel, R. G. D., and J. H. Torrie. 1980. Principles and Procedures of Statistics: A Biometrical Approach. 2nd ed. McGraw-Hill Book Co., New York, NY.

White, L. A., M. C. Newman, G. L. Cromwell, and M. D. Lindemann. 2002. Brewers dried yeast as a source of mannan oligosaccharides for weanling pigs. J. Anim. Sci. 80:2619–2628.[Abstract/Free Full Text]

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