AUTHOR=Zhang Qianqian , Li Jian , Yi Xin , Li Zipeng , Liang Shuang , Fang Zhengfeng , Lin Yan , Xu Shengyu , Feng Bin , Zhuo Yong , Wu De , Che Lianqiang 

TITLE=Rhodotorula benthica culture as an alternative to antibiotics improves growth performance by improving nutrients digestibility and intestinal morphology, and modulating gut microbiota of weaned piglets

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Microbiology

VOLUME=Volume 13 - 2022

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2022.964531

DOI=10.3389/fmicb.2022.964531

ISSN=1664-302X

ABSTRACT=The effects of Rhodotorula benthica culture (RBC) and antibiotics (AB) on the growth performance, nutrients digestibility, morphological indicators, and colonic microbiota of weaning piglets were explored. Ninety-six (Duroc × Landrace × Large) weaned piglets (21-day old) weighing 7.7 ± 0.83 kg, were randomly allocated into 4 dietary treatments. They were fed on basal diet (CON), basal diet + 25 ppm bacitracin zinc + 5 ppm colistin sulfate (AB), 5% reduction in soybean meal of basal diet + 5 g/kg RBC (RBC1) or 10% reduction in soybean meal of basal diet + 10 g/kg RBC (RBC2). The result showed that dietary RBC1 improved the body gain/ feed intake (G/F) of weaned piglets than CON diet, and RBC2 diet improved average daily gain and G/F than CON and AB diets from day 15 to 28 (P < 0.05). Supplementation of RBC2 improved the apparent total tract digestibility of dry matter, nitrogen, and gross energy in weaned piglets compared with controls from day 15 to 28 (P < 0.05). Dietary AB, RBC1, and RBC2 all improved the ileal villus height and villus height/ crypt depth, and the two indicators were greater in the RBC2 -treated piglets than those in the AB and RBC1 groups (P < 0.05). The serum superoxide dismutase activity was enhanced by dietary AB, RBC1, and RBC2 (P < 0.05). Glutathione concentration was elevated by dietary RBC1 and RBC2 (P < 0.05). According to 16S rRNA sequence analysis, AB -and RBC2-treated weaning piglets had a high relative abundance of Firmicutes and Lachnospiraceae in the colon digesta, and high Lactobacillus was found in RBC1-treated piglets. Additionally, RBC2 supplementation increased the α diversity (Chao1, PD-whole-tree, and observed-OTUs). Taken together, dietary RBC improved the growth performance of weaned piglets, and 10 g/kg RBC2 in the diet exceeded the effect of AB on the weaning piglets.