The effects of feed naturally contaminated with Fusarium mycotoxins on the thymus in suckling piglets

Ujčič Vrhovnik, Igor (author), Švara, Tanja (author), Malovrh, Tadej (author), Jakovac-Strajn, Breda (author)

In this study, feed naturally containing Fusarium mycotoxins was fed to gilts during the perinatal period, and the effects on the thymus were investigated in one-week-old piglets. Twenty gilts were divided into equal control (0.26 mg deoxynivalenol, DON) and experimental (5.08 mg DON, 0.09 mg zearalenone and 21.61 mg fusaric acid per kg of feed) groups. One suckling piglet from each litter (n = 20) was sacrificed at one week of age to obtain thymus samples for further analysis. The cortex to medulla ratio of the thymus was morphometrically analysed using NIS Elements BR (Nikon) software. Paraffin-embedded thymus sections were stained to quantify apoptosis (with terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick-end labelling – TUNEL method), cellular proliferation (Ki-67) and macrophages (MAC 387). The results showed that the thymus cortex (P = 0.023) to medulla (P = 0.023) ratio was significantly lower in the experimental group. The number of apoptotic cells (cortex, P = 0.010, medulla, P = 0.001) and the number of proliferating cells in the thymus cortex (P = 0.001) and medulla (P < 0.001) were significantly higher in the experimental group. Our results indicate that feeding Fusarium mycotoxins to a parent animal during the perinatal period induces significant alterations in the thymus of one-week-old piglets, which indicates an immunosuppressive effect in piglets.

• Language: English
• Keywords: Fusarium, mycotoxins, piglets, thymus, sdverse effects
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: VF - Veterinary Faculty
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Author Accepted Manuscript
• Year: 2020
• Number of pages: Str. 186-192
• Numbering: Vol. 68, no. 2
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-124476
• UDC: 636.4.09:615.9
• ISSN on article: 0236-6290
• DOI: 10.1556/004.2020.00030
• COBISS.SI-ID: 48426755
• Publication date in RUL: 25.01.2021

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: Acta veterinaria Hungarica
• Shortened title: Acta Vet. Hung.
• Publisher: Akadémiai Kiadó
• ISSN: 0236-6290
• COBISS.SI-ID: 610170

Licences

• License: CC BY-NC-ND 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
• Description: The most restrictive Creative Commons license. This only allows people to download and share the work for no commercial gain and for no other purposes.
• Licensing start date: 25.01.2021

Projects

• Funder: ARRS - Slovenian Research Agency
• Project number: P4-0092
• Name: Zdravje živali, okolje in varna hrana