Effects of prebiotics, probiotics and synbiotics in the diet of young pigs

Keywords: prebiotics, piglets, gut health
Prebiotics are non-digestible carbohydrates that are not metabolized in the small intestine and fermented in the large intestine. Oligofructose are non-digestible oligosaccharides which may stimulate beneficial bacteria in the gut and may affect the gut ecosystem. Prebiotic effects will depend largely on their chemical structure (degree of polymerization). Dietary inclusion of probiotics in young pig diets may beneficially affect gut microbiota. Synbiotics, a combination of prebiotics and probiotics may also stimulate the gut ecosystem. The objective of this thesis was to evaluate the effects of pre-, pro- and synbiotics on the gut ecosystem, and some performance parameters. A series of in vivo and in vitro experiments were carried out using suckling and weaned piglets. The experimental results are discussed in this thesis. Overall, it was concluded that synbiotics, a combination of multi-strain probiotics and oligofructose, can positively affect performance especially feed intake, and can improve the gut health. However, we did not observe a clear synergistic effect compared to supplementing oligofructose or probiotics alone. A combination of high and low polymer inulin will probably be more beneficial for the intestinal ecosystem and health than using either high- or low polymer inulin alone. The present studies show that the pre-, pro- and synbiotic treatments affect gut microbiota and performance of young pigs.