Effects of vitamin E and fat supplementation on concentration of vitamin E in plasma and milk of sows and in plasma of piglets.

Twenty-seven (Yorkshire) gilts, on a corn-soybean diet up to 57 d of gestation, were assigned to 3 treatment groups. Group 1 received no fat, Group 2 were supplemented with 5% tallow and Group 3 with 5% fish oil. Each group was supplemented with 0.1 ppm Se and 22, 44 or 88 IU of dl-alpha-tocopherol acetate/kg of feed. Samples of gilts' blood were taken at 57, 78 and 99 days of gestation, parturition, 14 and 28 d later. Similarly, first colostrum and milk (14 and 28 days postpartum) were sampled. Blood samples were also taken from the newborn piglets and at 14 and 28 d post natally. Increasing gilts' dietary vitamin E concentrations during gestation and lactation increased alpha-tocopherol levels in the plasma (P < 0.05). No statistical difference was observed (P > 0.05) in gilts' plasma alpha-tocopherol concentration at any blood sampling time among dietary fat treatments. Dietary fat did not affect alpha-tocopherol concentrations in colostrum or milk (P > 0.05). Overall the effect of vitamin E supplementation was linear in the milk at 14 and 28 d of sampling. The level of alpha-tocopherol in the colostrum was much higher than in milk. At birth piglet tocopherol concentrations were very low, perhaps because little tocopherol crosses the placental barrier. At day 14 piglet plasma tocopherol concentrations increased about 4-fold (P < 0.01) with a tendency for a greater concentration in piglets sucking gilts receiving higher levels of alpha-tocopherol. Dietary effects were not found to be significant (P > 0.05).