Skip to main content
ARS Home » Plains Area » Lubbock, Texas » Cropping Systems Research Laboratory » Livestock Issues Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #187588
Title: DIETARY L-ARGININE SUPPLEMENTATION AFFECTS IMMUNE STATUS OF PREGNANT GILTS

Author
item KIM, SUNG WOO - TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY
item MATEO, RONALDO - TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY
item WU, GUOVAO - TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY
item Carroll, Jeffery - Jeff Carroll
item SHIZATO, IZURU - AJINOMOTO CO., INC

Submitted to: Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology Conference
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 11/25/2005
Publication Date: 4/1/2006
Citation: Kim, S.W., Mateo, R., Wu, G., Carroll, J.A., Shizato, I. 2006. Dietary L-arginine supplementation affects immune status of pregnant gilts [abstract]. The Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology Journal. 20:4. Abstract #A424.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: This study was conducted to determine the effect of dietary L-arginine supplementation on the immune status of pregnant gilts. A total of 53 pregnant gilts with an initial body weight of 166.25, plus or minus 1.81 kg, and backfat thickness of 13.26, plus or minus 0.21 mm, were housed individually in gestation crates. At d 30 of gestation, gilts were assigned randomly to corn- and soybean-based diets supplemented with 1.0% L-arginine (treatment group) or 1.7% L-alanine (isonitrogenous control). Both diets contained 3.1 Mcal ME/kg and 12.2% CP. Gilts were fed 1 kg of the diet twice a day at 0700 and at 1700 h during the gestation period. Blood samples were collected at 0900 on d 30, 50, 70, 90, and 110 of gestation. Whole blood samples were used for hematological analysis as determined by CELL-DYN®. The numbers of white blood cells, neutrophil, basophil, eosinophil, monocytes, and total lymphocytes did not differ (P > 0.05) between the control and treatment groups at d 30, 50, 70, and 90 of gestation. However, compared with the control group, arginine supplementation increased the numbers of white blood cells (P = 0.013), neutrophil (P = 0.007) and basophil (P = 0.011) at 110 d of gestation. These results demonstrate the L-arginine supplementation at 1% affects immune cell populations of first parity sows. Supported by Texas Tech Univ., Texas A&M Univ., Ajinomoto, and USDA.