Browsing by Subject "colostrum cytokines"

Immunodeficiency in neonatal piglet is one of the major causes of pre-weaning mortality. Colostrum supply cytokines to newborn piglets, which play an important role in formation of their immune mechanism. This study aims to identify the relationship between sow’s blood and colostrum cytokines, and effect of resin acid-enriched composition (RAC) in sow’s blood and colostrum cytokines concentration. RAC is a plant extract of coniferous tree, and it is composed of resin acids and fatty acids which exert immunomodulatory function. Two experiments were conducted in two different farms where RAC was supplemented in the diet of late gestation sows, starting from one week before of expected farrowing date till farrowing. Multiplex immunoassay was used to determine the interferon alpha (IFN-α), interferon gamma (IFN-ɣ), interleukin 1 (IL-1), interleukin 10 (IL-10), interleukin 4 (IL-4), interleukin 6 (IL-6), interleukin 8 (IL-8), tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) and interleukin 12p40 (IL-12p40) cytokines concentration in blood and colostrum of sow collected within 2 hours of the birth of first piglets. There were significant (p < 0.05) positive correlations between sow’s blood and colostrum cytokines concentration. RAC-fed sows had significantly (p < 0.05) higher level of IL-1 and showed positive tendency (p = 0.1) to increase TNF-α cytokine level in blood. Colostrum level of IFN- ɣ, IL-1 and IL-12p40 had also positive tendency (p = 0.1) to rise in RAC supplemented sow. On this basis, it is proposed that application of RAC in late gestation sow diet enhance the cytokine production in sow’s blood, and blood cytokines levels are positively correlated with colostrum cytokines.