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Impact of Maternal Selenium Supplementation from Late Gestation and Lactation on Piglet Immune Function

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Abstract

The present work aimed at assessing passive, innate, and acquired immunity in piglets from sows supplemented with either organic or inorganic selenium (Se). A total of 12 multiparous pregnant sows were randomly allocated to three groups: selenium-deficient, corn and soy–based diet base diet (BD), 0.3 mg Se/kg as hydroxy-selenomethionine (OH-SeMet), and 0.3 mg Se/kg as sodium selenite (SS). The feeding trial was carried out from gd 84 to weaning on postpartum day 21 (ppd 21). On gd 98 and 105, sows were vaccinated with hen egg white lysozyme (HEWL) to assess passive immunity. On ppd 23, weaned piglets were intramuscularly challenged with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) to trigger an acute-phase response. On ppd 14, 28, and 35, piglets were vaccinated with ovalbumin (OVA) to assess OVA-specific immunoglobulin G (IgG) and dermal hypersensitivity responses. Se levels in piglet plasma, muscle, and liver on ppd 21 were higher in OH-SeMet group. On ppd 2, piglet HEWL-specific IgG levels in OH-SeMet group were significantly increased. IL-10 and haptoglobin (HP) levels in OH-SeMet group were significantly increased 2 h and 48 h post-LPS simulation, respectively. The OVA-specific IgG levels in BD group were significantly higher than the other two groups, and the IL-4 concentration following whole blood ex vivo challenge with either OVA or mitogen was significantly increased in OH-SeMet group. OVA-specific skin swelling was lower in OH-SeMet and SS groups at 3 h and 6 h. This suggests that sow supplementation with OH-SeMet enhances mainly passive immunity through IgG maternal transfer and can influence piglet innate and acquired immunity.

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Abbreviations

AGPs:

antibiotic growth promoters

ELISA:

enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay

gd:

gestational day

HEWL:

hen egg white lysozyme

HP:

haptoglobin

Ig:

immunoglobulins

LPS:

lipopolysaccharide

OH-SeMet:

hydroxy-selenomethionine

OVA:

ovalbumin

PBS:

phosphate-buffered saline

PHA:

phytohemagglutinin

ppd:

post-partum day

SD:

standard deviation

Se:

selenium

SS:

sodium selenite

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Funding

This work was supported by Adisseo France S.A.S. (HZAU15SES556) and Hubei Province Natural Science Foundation of China (2017CFB514) and National Natural Science Foundation of China (30800808).

Author information

Author notes

  1. Ning-ya Li and Zhi-jian Sun contributed equally as first co-authors

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Basic Veterinary Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, China

    Ning-ya Li, Zhi-jian Sun, Lei Cui, Ya-fang Hu & Hua-zhen Liu

  2. Section of Anatomy and Histology, Department of Basic Sciences, College of Veterinary and Animal Sciences (CVAS) Jhang, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences (UVAS), Lahore, Pakistan

    Abdur Rahman Ansari

  3. Department of Animal Biosciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, N1G2W1, Canada

    Zi-wei Li & Niel A. Karrow

  4. Adisseo France S.A.S, Antony, France

    Mickael Briens

  5. Adisseo Life Science, Shanghai, China

    Lei Kai

  6. Department of Animal Nutrition and Feed Science, College of Animal Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, China

    Lv-hui Sun

Authors
  1. Ning-ya Li
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Contributions

N.A.K, B.M, H.L, and L.S planned and conceived the experiments. N.L, Z.S, Z.L, H.L, L.S, L.C, and Y.H performed the experiments and carried out laboratory analyses. H.L, A.R.A, N.L, and Z.S analyzed data, designed the figures, and wrote the manuscript. N.A.K, B.M, and L.K edited the manuscript. All the authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Lv-hui Sun, Niel A. Karrow or Hua-zhen Liu.

Ethics declarations

This study was approved by the Ethics Committee of Huazhong Agricultural University (HZAUMU2013–0005). The experiments were performed in accordance with the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals (1996), and protocols were approved by the Hubei Province for Biological Studies Animal Care and Use Committee.

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Li, Ny., Sun, Zj., Ansari, A.R. et al. Impact of Maternal Selenium Supplementation from Late Gestation and Lactation on Piglet Immune Function. Biol Trace Elem Res 194, 159–167 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-019-01754-y

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