Studies on dietary microbial programming in sows and their piglets and the susceptibility to early-life Clostridium difficile infection
Final Report Abstract
Based on the literature reports, own findings and proposed relationship between mother sow and their offspring in relation to susceptibility to Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI), it was hypothesised that the diet modulates the microbiota of the sow during the perinatal period, which affects the “early microbial programming” of the piglets and consequently, modifies the shedding and susceptibility to CDI in the piglets. Following the hypothesis, this project aimed at studying the potential mechanisms for resistance and susceptibility of the newborn piglets to CDI (host-C. difficile interactions in ex vivo and in vitro studies: porcine tissue integrity in presence of C. difficile toxins, potential colostrum inhibitory properties on C. difficile toxins in a cell culture model). The project further explored the impact of dietary intervention on the sow-offspring early microbial association and shedding of C. difficile in piglets. Specifically, high-fibre diets with high- or low-fermentable fibre sources were fed to sows during gestation and lactation periods and C. difficile colonisation and susceptibility to infections in neonatal piglets (through the modulation of the sow and offspring gut micro-ecosystem) was assessed. The results of this project clearly demonstrated that the sows fed diets enriched with high-fermentable sugar beet pulp fibres, compared to low-fermentable lignocellulose fibres during gestation and lactation reduced C. difficile colonisation in suckling piglets from the second day of life until weaning. The mechanisms for the observed effects are complex and may be related to the modulation of the sow’s colostrum potential by means of different nutrient and bioactive compounds such as bile acid levels. The observed effects may also be related to the intestinal microbial composition and activity, as demonstrated by higher bacterial diversity and increased short-chain fatty acid production in sows fed high-fermentable fibres, as compared to lowfermentable fibres. These factors most likely influence the piglet’s intestinal microbial development and microbial metabolic activity in different ways with a consequence on C. difficile outgrowth and colonisation, as observed in this project. The project also demonstrated that feeding the sows with diets enriched in highfermentable sugar beet pulp fibres compared to low-fermentable lignocellulose fibres has a beneficial effect on the intestinal barrier function, cell proliferation, immune response and bile acid metabolism in the gut of their neonatal offspring. These beneficial effects may contribute to better resilience against intestinal pathogens including C. difficile. However, the mechanisms of protection from C. difficile-colon intoxication in piglets seem to be complex and call for additional studies. Further, in vitro experiments demonstrated that colostrum of the sows fed either highfermentable or low-fermentable fibres contains toxin-neutralising antibodies and has a potential to protect intestinal porcine epithelial cell cultures from the loss of integrity, which may be important for the protection from CDI development in neonatal piglets. Overall, the susceptibility to colonisation by C. difficile in neonatal piglets can be modulated by the sows’ diet, supporting the hypothesis of the early microbial programming in the offspring and the importance of the sow-piglet relationship. The outcome of this project has great potential to define new research questions focusing on dietary fibres in pigs and their influence on the microbial and intestinal development and resilience to intestinal pathogens in early life. Mechanisms of resistance to C. difficile colonisation and infection in piglets can be further explored based on the results of the current project. The project outcome may contribute to better defining the dietary fibre fraction in sows’ feeds during gestation and lactation. This may have important consequences on sows’ physiology, reduction of C. difficile colonisation and CDI outbreaks in piglets, and it could minimise the antibiotic resistance spread among the animals and farmers and piglet-related losses on the farms.
Publications
- Developing Gut Microbiota Exerts Colonisation Resistance to Clostridium (syn. Clostridioides) Difficile in Piglets. Microorganisms 2019; 7, 218
Grześkowiak, Dadi, Zentek and Vahjen
(See online at https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms7080218) - Distinct Patterns of Microbial Metabolic Fingerprints in Sows and Their Offspring: A Pilot Study. Archives of Microbiology 2020; 202, 511–517
Grześkowiak Ł, Teske J, Zentek J and Vahjen W
(See online at https://doi.org/10.1007/s00203-019-01766-1) - Porcine Colostrum Protects the IPEC-J2 Cells and Piglet Colon Epithelium against Clostridioides (syn. Clostridium) Difficile Toxin-Induced Effects. Microorganisms 2020; 8, 142
Grześkowiak Ł, Pieper R, Kröger S, Martínez-Vallespín B, Hauser AE, Niesner R, Vahjen W and Zentek J
(See online at https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms8010142) - Editorial for the Special Issue: Clostridium difficile. Microorganisms 2021; 9, 368
Grześkowiak ŁM
(See online at https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms9020368) - Fiber composition in sows’ diets modifies Clostridioides difficile colonization in their offspring. Current Microbiololgy 2022; 79, 154
Grześkowiak Ł, Saliu E-M, Martínez-Vallespín B, Wessels AG, Männer K, Vahjen W, Zentek J
(See online at https://doi.org/10.1007/s00284-022-02848-y)
