Effects of Supplemental Feeding of Branched-chain Amino Acids to Mares on Growth Performance and Fecal Flora of Lactating Foals
[Objective]The aim of this experiment was to investigate the effects of supplemental feeding of different doses of branched-chain amino acids(BCAAs)to Yili mares during lactation on the growth performance and fecal flora of lactating foals,in order to provide a reference basis for safeguarding the growth and health of foals during lactation.[Method]Twenty lactating mares and their foals(lactating foals between 2 and 3 months of age,with an initial weight of 97.60 kg±13.24 kg,lactating mares weighing 392.90 kg±12.18 kg)were selected and randomly divided into four groups of five mares each,the control group and the experimental groups Ⅰ,Ⅱ,and Ⅲ,and were kept under the same feeding management conditions for 67 d(7 d pre-feeding period,60 d experimental period).During the test period,mares in control and test groups were supplemented with 2 kg of concentrate per day,and mares in test groups Ⅰ,Ⅱ,and Ⅲ were supplemented with 38,76 and 114 g/d of BCAAs,respectively.Body measurements and body weights were taken on the day before experiment and 60th day of the experiment,and feces were collected by rectal fecal sampling on the 60th day,and fecal flora diversity of foals was analyzed.[Result]On the 60th day of the trial,the breast circumference and body weight of foals in the test group Ⅲ were significantly higher than those in control group(P＜0.05),and the body weight of foals in the test group Ⅱ was significantly higher than those in control group(P＜0.05).The number of fecal flora OTUs was 4 553,4 483,4 607 and 3 839 in test groups Ⅰ,Ⅱ,Ⅲ,and control groups,respectively.There was no significant difference in the Alpha diversity index as well as the number of species observed among the groups(P＞0.05).The relative abundance of Spirochaetota in test group Ⅱ was significantly higher than that in control group and test groupⅠ(P＜0.05),and the relative abundance of Lachnospiraceae was significantly higher than that of control and test group Ⅲ(P＜0.05).The relative abundance of Rumenococcaceae was significantly higher in both test groups Ⅰ and Ⅱ than control group(P＜0.05),and the relative abundance of Rikenellaceae in test group Ⅲ was significantly higher than that in control group(P＜0.05).At the genus level,the relative abundance of Treponema was the highest and significantly higher in test group Ⅱ than that in test group Ⅰ(P＜0.05),and the relative abundance of Ruminococcus was significantly higher than in the other three groups(P＜0.05).The relative abundance of Prevotellaceae_UCG_004 in test group Ⅲ was highly significantly higher than that of control group and test group Ⅰ(P＜0.01).The differential items exhibited by LEfSe analysis and PICRUSt2 function prediction were all related to intestinal fermentation metabolism,short-chain fatty acid production,and amino acid metabolism.[Conclusion]Supplemental feeding of different doses of BCAAs to Yili mares could promote the growth of breast circumference and body weight of lactating foals,increase the abundance of beneficial intestinal flora,and decrease the abundance of harmful flora,and the best results were obtained by supplementing mares with 76 g/d of BCAAs.
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