Lippi Isabella Cristina de Castro, Caldara Fabiana Ribeiro, Almeida-Paz Ibiara Correia de Lima, Morais Henrique Biasotto, Odakura Agnês Markiy, Konkiewitz Elisabete Castelon, Ferreira Welber Sanches, Fraga Thiago Leite, Burbarelli Maria Fernanda de Castro, Felix Gisele Aparecida, Garcia Rodrigo Garófallo, Santos Luan Sousa Dos
School of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, Paulista State University, Street Prof. Dr. Walter Maurício Corrêa w/n, Botucatu 18618-687, São Paulo, Brazil.
Faculty of Agricultural Science, Federal University of Grande Dourados, Itahum Highway, km 12, Dourados 79804-970, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil.
Animals (Basel). 2022 Aug 28;12(17):2211. doi: 10.3390/ani12172211.
The rearing environment of pigs can cause a high level of stress due to the lack of stimuli and the impossibility of carrying out natural behaviors. Music therapy is a way to enrich the environment and promote stress relief. Few studies in swine using environmental enrichers focus on functional benefits, such as stress resilience, improved biological functions, or mental status. The effect of environmental enrichment on neurobiological processes is particularly poorly understood in farm animals. Thus, our study sought to elucidate the influence of music in piglets exposed to music therapy in the intrauterine and extrauterine phase on neuroplasticity, evaluating the levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). Behavioural responses were also evaluated using fear tests related to stress resilience. The productive performance of these piglets was analysed to relate the possible reduction in stress levels to greater productivity gains. Forty-eight sows were used at 90 days of gestation until the weaning of their piglets. In the gestation phase, the sows were divided into two treatments: control (without music therapy) and music (with music therapy). In the farrowing/lactation phase, the sows were separated into four treatments: control-control (no music in any phase); control-music (music only in farrowing/lactation); music-control (music only during pregnancy); and music-music (music in both reproductive phases). Music therapy did not cause a difference in the BDNF levels of piglets at birth. However, piglets born from sows of the music-music treatment did not show a reduction in BDNF between birth and weaning, unlike the other treatments. Exposure to music in the last 1/3 of pregnancy and farrowing/lactation improved the weight of piglets at birth and at weaning. Musical enrichment during pregnancy and lactation was able to cause changes in the piglets' neuroplasticity and improve their productive performances.
猪的饲养环境可能会因缺乏刺激以及无法进行自然行为而导致高度应激。音乐疗法是一种丰富环境并促进缓解应激的方法。在猪身上使用环境富集物的研究很少关注其功能益处，如应激恢复力、改善生物学功能或精神状态。在农场动物中，环境富集对神经生物学过程的影响尤其不清楚。因此，我们的研究旨在阐明宫内和宫外阶段接受音乐疗法的仔猪接触音乐对神经可塑性的影响，评估脑源性神经营养因子（BDNF）的水平。还使用与应激恢复力相关的恐惧测试来评估行为反应。分析这些仔猪的生产性能，以将应激水平的可能降低与更高的生产效益联系起来。48头母猪在妊娠90天直至其仔猪断奶期间被使用。在妊娠阶段，母猪被分为两种处理：对照（无音乐疗法）和音乐（有音乐疗法）。在分娩/哺乳阶段，母猪被分为四种处理：对照-对照（任何阶段都无音乐）；对照-音乐（仅在分娩/哺乳时有音乐）；音乐-对照（仅在怀孕期间有音乐）；以及音乐-音乐（两个生殖阶段都有音乐）。音乐疗法在仔猪出生时并未导致其BDNF水平出现差异。然而，与其他处理不同，音乐-音乐处理组母猪所生的仔猪在出生至断奶期间BDNF水平并未降低。在妊娠最后1/3阶段以及分娩/哺乳期间接触音乐可提高仔猪出生时和断奶时的体重。孕期和哺乳期的音乐富集能够引起仔猪神经可塑性的变化并改善其生产性能。
