Capsaicin in sow diets increases effectiveness in nursery pigs

Pigs fed capsaicin that were offspring of sows fed capsaicin experience a positive ADG.

August 13, 2020

4 Min Read
National Hog Farmer logo in a gray background | National Hog Farmer
National Pork Board

"Eat your vegetables" is a common instruction from mothers to their children. Similarly, sows instruct their offspring with clues about beneficial and toxic foods in their environment.

Therefore, application of feed additives in nursery pig diets may be more effective if we also supplement the sow diet with the same feed additive. Capsaicin extracted from peppers (Capsicum spp.) activate gastrointestinal tract sensors such as the transient receptor potential cation channel-1 (TRPV-1). The consequence of this activation is sensation of irritation but also improved enzyme secretion and intestinal integrity.

With this premise in mind, we conducted an experiment to determine potential carry-over effects of pigs nursing sows fed capsaicin diets on post-weaning growth performance and gene expression.

The study was conducted in two phases (Figure 1). Lactating sows were fed a corn-soybean meal-based diet without capsaicin and other sows were fed the same diet supplemented with Capsaicin (Leader Capsaicin 2%, Leader Bio-Technology Co. Ltd., Guangzhou, China). The weaned offspring of these two group of sows were split in another two groups. Weaned pigs were fed a three-phase nursery program for 35 days, and diets were mixed with or without capsaicin at a dose that increased with weaning age.

Figure 1: Experimental design and dietary conditions

Figure 1: Experimental design and dietary conditions

There were no differences in average daily feed intake or average daily gain on the first week post-weaning (Figure 2). However, pigs fed capsaicin in the nursery diet that were the offspring of sows fed capsaicin had greater (P < 0.01) gain-to-feed ratio than pigs fed capsaicin that were the offspring of sows fed the control diet. This greater gain-to-feed ratio appears to be the result of the combined numeric improvement in ADFI and ADG.

Figure 2: Growth performance of nursery pigs fed control or capsaicin supplemented diets that were raised by sow’s fed control or capsaicin supplemented diets in lactation.

Figure 2: Growth performance of nursery pigs fed control or capsaicin supplemented diets that were raised by sow’s fed control or capsaicin supplemented diets in lactation. Average daily feed intake (A), average daily gain (B), and gain-to-feed ratio (C) of the first week post-weaning. Final body weight after 35 days feeding the nursery program (D). Treatment diets post-weaning contained 50, 65 and 80 ppm capsaicin in phases 1, 2 and 3; respectively.

Specifically, pigs fed capsaicin that were the offspring of sows fed capsaicin experience a positive ADG while pigs fed the control diet that were the offspring of sows fed the control diet lost weight. These results are not the first to suggest that feeding a plant extract to the sows modify the feed intake of nursery pigs fed the same plant extract. Nursery pigs fed anise oil (50 parts per million) in the nursery that were the offspring of sows consuming anise oil in the lactation diet had about 12% greater ADFI than pigs fed no anise and progeny of sows fed no anise (Charal et al. 2016; Professional Anim. Sci. 32:99-105). However, our data are the first to suggest that this approach also affects gain efficiency.

We do not know if exposure to plant extracts pre-weaning affects post-weaning growth performance through flavor recognition and/or an integrated physiological and metabolic effect. Therefore, at the end of the nursery feeding program (Day 35), we collected blood from one pig in each pen to measure gene expression based on RNA sequencing. The greatest changes in expressed genes (differential gene expression) was observed in pigs from sows fed capsaicin.

New experiments are needed to understand the impact of plant extract such as capsaicin on gene expression, the functions of these genes and their relationship with growth performance of pigs.

Coordinating the addition of capsaicin to lactating sow diets and the diets of their weaned offspring appears to improve feed intake and gain efficiency during the first week post-weaning. This may be a useful way in which the sow's nutrition can benefit growth performance of their offspring beyond the lactation period. We don't know if the level of capsaicin impacted food intake because of flavor or some other more subtle mechanism in piglets' development, the outcome is the same; we should listen to her advice.

Sources: Pedro E. Urriola, Eduardo Rosa-Medina, Jae C. Jang, Christopher D. Faulk, Lee J. Johnston and Gerald C. Shurson, who are solely responsible for the information provided, and wholly own the information. Informa Business Media and all its subsidiaries are not responsible for any of the content contained in this information asset.

Subscribe to Our Newsletters
National Hog Farmer is the source for hog production, management and market news

You May Also Like