Current scientific studies indicate a serious danger due to liver diseases in lactating sows

t the start of lactation, the sow faces a major metabolic challenge. Milk production increases the energy requirement, which is limited by the feed intake capacity. To compensate the resulting energetic deficit, body mass is additionally metabolized. The issue is that fatty acids reach the liver through the melting of body fat. In addition to infectious diseases such as mastitis and metritis, this metabolic stress can trigger liver inflammatory reactions, which are also enlarged by oxidative, social and heat stress (EDER et al. 2017). This leads to the interfering with the metabolism and fatty acid oxidation and the transportation of fats from the liver may be reduced, which promotes the development of a fatty liver. Furthermore, the inflammatory process of the liver is associated with the development of stress in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER stress) because of the overstrained folding capacity of proteins.

These occurrences are already well known in dairy cows. But even in sows it could be demonstrated that an inflammatory process develops in the liver. However, the pathophysiological importance of this inflammatory process could not be clarified yet. It can be assumed that the inflammatory process in the liver, as in cows, can affect not only animal health but also the lactating performance. On top of that the proven higher performance impairment of cows through metabolic problems and endotoxins are similar in sows.

Metabolic problems and endotoxins

Besides the metabolic stress, which is similar to ketosis, heat stress is considered to be of crucial importance in terms of reduced feed intake and performance. Under heat stress blood flows out of the organs to dissipate heat. In the intestine, for example, it can lead to a lower content of oxygen (= hypoxia). The intestinal mucous membrane is particularly sensitive to such hypoxia. Under these conditions, an increased growth of gram-negative bacteria (G-) can be assumed. As a consequence of a chain reaction, morphological changes occur which lead to a reduced intestinal barrier function. With the passage of intestinal contents into the blood stream, the bacterial residues produced by G- bacteria, the so-called endotoxins (also called as lipopolysaccharides = LPS), enter the bloodstream (KVIDERA et al. 2017).

WH67® EG02 – effective protection for the intestine

The positive effects of the humic acid based WH67® EG02 on the intestinal health are diverse. In addition to the inhibition of G-bacteria, the neutralization of pollutants is particularly remarkable. In this way, the occurrence of LPS can be considerably minimized. Moreover, WH67® EG02 enhances the production of mucus in the intestine, which serves as a protective function of intestinal villi. As a result, inflammations in the intestine are reduced, and the passage of LPS into the blood is minimized. WH67® EG02 is thus an important component for the protection of intestinal health and indirectly also for the liver health. Besides humic acids new scientific studies have shown that there are natural substances available that can also directly improve liver health. These substances may have a huge potential in future animal nutrition of high performing genetics. However, due to the low bioavailability new production processes have to be developed to make these substances working in the organism, which is an actual topic in our research and development work.

Source:
EDER, K., GESSNER, D.K., RINGSEIS, R. (2017): Entzündung bei der Sau während der Laktation und Möglichkeiten der Intervention durch die Ernährung.
KVIDERA, S. K., HORST, E. A., AL-QUASI, M., DICKSON, M. J., RHOADS, R. P., KEATING, A. F. BAUMGARD, L. H. (2017): Leaky Gut´s Contribution to Inefficient Nutrient Utilization.

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