<i>Lactobacillus delbrueckii</i> Ameliorates Intestinal Integrity and Antioxidant Ability in Weaned Piglets after a Lipopolysaccharide Challenge
Fengming Chen, Houjun Wang, Jiayi Chen, Yang Liu, Wei Wen, Yinghui Li, Xingguo Huang
Abstract
This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of dietary supplementation with Lactobacillus delbrueckii (LAB) on intestinal morphology, barrier function, immune response, and antioxidant capacity in weaned piglets challenged with lipopolysaccharide (LPS). A total of 36 two-line crossbred (Landrace × large Yorkshire) weaned piglets (28 days old) were divided into three groups: (1) nonchallenged control (CON); (2) LPS-challenged control (LPS); and (3) LAB+LPS treatment (0.2% LAB+LPS). Compared to the LPS piglets, the LAB+LPS piglets improved intestinal morphology, indicated by greater (<mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M1"><mml:mi>P</mml:mi><mml:mo><</mml:mo><mml:mn>0.05</mml:mn></mml:math>) villus height in the duodenum and ileum; villus height : crypt depth ratio in the duodenum, jejunum, and ileum, as well as decreased (<mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M2"><mml:mi>P</mml:mi><mml:mo><</mml:mo><mml:mn>0.05</mml:mn></mml:math>) crypt depth in the jejunum and ileum; and better intestinal barrier function, indicated by upregulated (<mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M3"><mml:mi>P</mml:mi><mml:mo><</mml:mo><mml:mn>0.05</mml:mn></mml:math>) mRNA expression of tight junction proteins in the intestinal mucosa. Moreover, compared to the LPS piglets, LAB significantly decreased (<mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M4"><mml:mi>P</mml:mi><mml:mo><</mml:mo><mml:mn>0.05</mml:mn></mml:math>) concentrations of TNF- α and IL-1 β in the small intestine and increased (<mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M5"><mml:mi>P</mml:mi><mml:mo><</mml:mo><mml:mn>0.05</mml:mn></mml:math>) IL-10 levels in the jejunum and ileum. Additionally, LAB increased (<mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M6"><mml:mi>P</mml:mi><mml:mo><</mml:mo><mml:mn>0.05</mml:mn></mml:math>) T-AOC activities of the colon, GSH concentrations of the jejunum, and mRNA expression of CAT and Cu/Zn-SOD, while reduced (<mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M7"><mml:mi>P</mml:mi><mml:mo><</mml:mo><mml:mn>0.05</mml:mn></mml:math>) MDA concentrations in the jejunum and ileum in LPS-changed piglets. Collectively, our results indicate that supplementation of LAB improved intestinal integrity and immune response and alleviated intestinal oxidative damage in LPS-challenged piglets.