Huang Jun, Li Shengkai, Sung Jung Yeol, Qiao Shiyan, Zeng Xiangfang, Zhou Junyan
College of Animal Science and Technology, Beijing University of Agriculture, Beijing 102206, China.
College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China.
Antioxidants (Basel). 2025 Mar 18;14(3):359. doi: 10.3390/antiox14030359.
Sows and piglets face heightened oxidative stress during gestation and lactation, yet strategies to simultaneously mitigate these challenges remain underexplored. This study investigated the effects of β-carotene and superoxide dismutase (SOD) supplementation on 140 Landrace × Yorkshire sows (parity 3-5) randomly assigned to (1) a control; (2) long-term low-dose treatment (25 mg/kg β-carotene, 4 mg/kg SOD, or both) throughout gestation-lactation; or (3) short-term high-dose treatment (100 mg/kg β-carotene, 14 mg/kg SOD, or both) administered 7 days pre/post-weaning and farrowing. Our data indicate that the antioxidants enhanced the productive performance of both sows and piglets, with the most pronounced effect observed in the long-term, low-dose combined administration of β-carotene and SOD. The composite antioxidants significantly improved the systemic antioxidant capacity in sows, while concurrently reducing the cortisol and lipopolysaccharide concentrations in the serum. This enhancement contributed to elevations in serum progesterone and prolactin levels at day 40 of gestation and farrowing, respectively, ultimately increasing the number of weaned piglets and decreasing the backfat loss. In addition, the compound antioxidants improved the serum antioxidant indices of piglets, increased the growth hormone concentrations, and improved the litter weight gain. Mechanistically, the placental upregulation of , , and , alongside Claudin1, Occludin, and ZO-1 expression, underpinned improved nutrient transport and barrier function. These findings demonstrate that β-carotene and SOD synergistically transfer antioxidant capacity via placental and colostrum pathways, offering a viable strategy for integrated sow-piglet management.
母猪和仔猪在妊娠和哺乳期面临更高的氧化应激，但同时减轻这些挑战的策略仍未得到充分探索。本研究调查了补充β-胡萝卜素和超氧化物歧化酶（SOD）对140头长白×大白母猪（第3-5胎）的影响，这些母猪被随机分配到（1）对照组；（2）在整个妊娠-哺乳期进行长期低剂量处理（25毫克/千克β-胡萝卜素、4毫克/千克SOD或两者兼有）；或（3）在断奶前后和分娩前后7天进行短期高剂量处理（100毫克/千克β-胡萝卜素、14毫克/千克SOD或两者兼有）。我们的数据表明，抗氧化剂提高了母猪和仔猪的生产性能，其中在长期低剂量联合施用β-胡萝卜素和SOD时观察到最显著的效果。复合抗氧化剂显著提高了母猪的全身抗氧化能力，同时降低了血清中的皮质醇和脂多糖浓度。这种增强分别导致妊娠第40天和分娩时血清孕酮和催乳素水平升高，最终增加了断奶仔猪的数量并减少了背膘损失。此外，复合抗氧化剂改善了仔猪的血清抗氧化指标，提高了生长激素浓度，并改善了窝重增加。从机制上讲，胎盘上调、和，以及Claudin1、Occludin和ZO-1的表达，支持了营养物质转运和屏障功能的改善。这些发现表明，β-胡萝卜素和SOD通过胎盘和初乳途径协同传递抗氧化能力，为母猪-仔猪综合管理提供了一种可行的策略。
