Influence of different non starch polysaccaride degrading feed enzymes on the intestinal microbiota in piglets

Abstract

In order to estimate the growth potential of intestinal bacteria under the influence of different types of enzymes, 1,4 â-arabinoxylan from wheat, 1,3 – 1,4 â-glucan from barley or modified wheat extracts were preincubated for 1 hour with an endo 1,4 â-xylanase- or a multienzyme preparation before incubation with intestinal contents of weaned piglets (56d). Compared to controls, both enzyme preparations inhibited bacterial growth in stomach contents in incubations with 1,4-â arabinoxylan as substrate, but the multienzyme preparation led to higher bacterial growth in jejunum and colon contents. A growth increase was noted for the multienzyme preparation and 1,3 – 1,4-â glucan as substrate in all intestinal segments, while the monoenzyme showed no difference with this substrate. A trend for growth reduction for both enzyme preparations in stomach- and in part in jejunum contents was also visible in incubations with a large molecular size wheat extract (> 30 kD). Only minor differences were observed for its low molecular counterpart (< 30 kD) and endo 1,4 â-xylanase preincubation, but the presence of the multienzyme preparation showed increased growth. This in vitro study has shown that intestinal bacteria react differently to the presence of non – starch polysaccharide (NSP) degrading enzymes. Production of multiple NSP fragments by the multienzym preparation from the wheat extracts may enhance bacterial growth in the jejunum, while the hydrolysis of 1,4-â arabinoxylans with the 1,4-â arabinoxylanase seemed to inhibit bacteria in all tested intestinal segments.