Effects of Prebiotic Galactooligosaccharide (Gos) on Piglet Growth and Jejunal Morphology During the Peri-Weaning Period

Abstract Galactooligosaccharide (GOS) is a specific prebiotic that is enzymatically synthesized from lactose to form beta-linked oligosaccharides containing 2-8 galactose units. In this study, GOS-enriched whey permeate (Milk Specialties Global, Eden Prairie MN) was supplemented to piglets in lactation and nursery phases. To maximize pre-weaning GOS intake, novel gruel creep feeders were utilized. Using a 3x2 factorial design, piglets from 24 litters received either no creep feed (NC), creep without GOS (CG-) or creep with 5% GOS (CG+) followed by a phase 1 nursery diet without (NG-) or with 3.8% GOS (NG+). After 1 week, pigs were fed common phase 2 and phase 3 diets. At d 22 (pre-weaning) and d 31 (post-weaning), 6 pigs per treatment were euthanized for intestinal measurements. Pre-weaning, creep fed pigs grew 19% faster than controls (P < 0.01) but GOS effects were not detected (P > 0.1). In contrast, pigs fed GOS in phase 1 grew 34 % faster than controls (P < 0.04), irrespective of creep treatment (interaction P > 0.1), and with corresponding greater intakes (P < 0.06). These GOS effects were sustained for overall nursery performance. Furthermore, overall ADG of CG+ piglets in the nursery tended to be greatest (P = 0.09), gaining 361g/d, followed by NC (324 g/d) and CG- (310 g/d) treatments (Table 1). No effects on jejunal morphology were detected at d 22, although there was an effect of age with decreased villi length, villus area, villi:crypt ratio and increased crypt depth at d 31 (P < 0.01). Supplementation of GOS in phase 1 increased villus length (36%) and area (51%) but only in pigs previously fed the control creep (CG-) diet (interaction, P < 0.01). Treatment effects on cecal pH and VFA concentrations were not detected, although there was an effect of age with a decrease in pH (P < 0.01) and increase in propionate and butyrate concentrations post-weaning (P < 0.01). We conclude that gruel creep feeding increases weight gain regardless of GOS treatment and that nursery growth and intestinal morphology are improved by post-weaning GOS supplementation. Funded in part by Milk Specialties Global, USDA-NIFA 2022-67015-37125 and Hatch 1016618.