Guo Shanshan, Feng Yanfei, Yang Jianhao, Zhao Haomiao, Ma Jiajun, Zhang Yuan, Sun Mengkun, Li Yifan, Lin Gang, Lin Pengfei, Wang Aihua, Jin Yaping
College of Veterinary Medicine, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Xianyang 712100, China.
Key Laboratory of Animal Biotechnology, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Xianyang 712100, China.
Animals (Basel). 2025 Jun 6;15(12):1684. doi: 10.3390/ani15121684.
The early-stage feeding of calves significantly impacts their lifelong productive performance. During this period, the calves' digestive tracts are in a dynamic state of development, making nutritional regulation a key factor in optimizing their growth potential. This research investigated the influence of mannan-rich fraction (MRF) supplementation on pre-weaning calves. Sixty healthy Holstein calves were randomly divided into a control group and three MRF-supplemented groups (seven males and eight females per group) with low (L-MRF, 2.5 g/calf per day), medium (M-MRF, 5 g/calf per day), and high (H-MRF, 10 g/calf per day) doses. Growth performance, serum biochemical indicators, organ indices, intestinal morphology, and short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) concentrations were measured over a 42-day experiment. Compared with the control group, the M-MRF group had 4.9% higher overall body weight, body length, and starter intake, alongside a reduced diarrhea incidence by 4.6%. At day 14, MRF-supplemented groups exhibited significantly lower Interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) levels, along with significantly higher Interleukin-12 (IL-12), growth hormone (GH), and Immunoglobulin G (IgG) levels. By day 42, IL-6 and Interleukin-1β (IL-1β) levels were also significantly decreased. Additionally, the lung and liver indices were higher and villus height was greater in both the jejunum and colon with MRF supplementation. In terms of SCFAs, the acetate level in the jejunum and the butyrate level in the colon were significantly higher in the MRF-supplemented calves. Both acetate in the jejunum and butyrate in the colon showed a significantly positive correlation with growth performance. Taken together, these findings suggest that MRF supplementation (particularly at 5 g/day) supports calf growth, gut health, and immunity, making it a promising nutritional strategy for pre-weaning calves.
犊牛的早期饲养对其终身生产性能有显著影响。在此期间，犊牛的消化道处于动态发育状态，因此营养调控是优化其生长潜力的关键因素。本研究调查了添加富含甘露聚糖的组分（MRF）对断奶前犊牛的影响。60头健康的荷斯坦犊牛被随机分为对照组和三个添加MRF的组（每组7头雄性和8头雌性），添加剂量分别为低剂量（L-MRF，每天2.5克/头）、中剂量（M-MRF，每天5克/头）和高剂量（H-MRF，每天10克/头）。在为期42天的实验中，测量了生长性能、血清生化指标、器官指数、肠道形态和短链脂肪酸（SCFA）浓度。与对照组相比，M-MRF组的总体重、体长和开食料摄入量高出4.9%，腹泻发生率降低了4.6%。在第14天，添加MRF的组白细胞介素-6（IL-6）和肿瘤坏死因子-α（TNF-α）水平显著降低，同时白细胞介素-12（IL-12）、生长激素（GH）和免疫球蛋白G（IgG）水平显著升高。到第42天，IL-6和白细胞介素-1β（IL-1β）水平也显著降低。此外，添加MRF后，肺和肝脏指数更高，空肠和结肠的绒毛高度更大。在SCFAs方面，添加MRF的犊牛空肠中的乙酸盐水平和结肠中的丁酸盐水平显著更高。空肠中的乙酸盐和结肠中的丁酸盐均与生长性能呈显著正相关。综上所述，这些发现表明添加MRF（特别是每天5克）有助于犊牛生长、肠道健康和免疫，使其成为断奶前犊牛一种有前景的营养策略。
