Pyrodextrin (PD) is prepared from starch by heat treatment and is resistant to amylase. We hypothesized that PD might have prebiotic potential affecting the microbiota composition, because it contains a non-digestible portion that may behave as dietary fiber. This study investigated the effects of PD supplementation on growth performance, gut morphology, short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), and the bacterial community in weaned piglets receiving dietary supplementation of 0.5% PD. The piglets in the PD (treated) groups showed greater antioxidant capacity and feed efficiency (P < 0.05), as well as improved intestinal morphology in comparison with the piglets in the weaned (control) group. Gut microbiota profiles were assessed through 16S rRNA sequencing on the ileum contents and feces of early weaned piglets. Several genus-level enrichments and depletions were observed in response to PD treatment. Of note, PD supplementation decreased the relative abundance of pathogenic organisms, including Defluviicoccus and Gardnerella, while markedly increasing that of commensal bacteria (genera Psychrobacter and Prevotella), which have important roles in nutrient absorption and immune response regulation. The most notable effect in the PD treatment groups was increased production of SCFAs in the feces of PD-treated weaned piglets. Correlation analysis revealed that the improvement in SCFAs was positively correlated with the increase in SCFA-producing bacteria. Overall, this study provides a more comprehensive understanding of the effects of PD supplementation on the fecal microbial community and the modulation of SCFA production in early weaned piglets, thus indicating that PD can be used to alleviate weaning stress in piglets.

中文翻译：

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焦糊精通过改变早期断奶仔猪的肠道微生物群组成和代谢来增强肠道功能。

焦糊精 (PD) 是由淀粉通过热处理制备的，对淀粉酶具有抗性。我们假设 PD 可能具有影响微生物群组成的益生元潜力，因为它含有不可消化的部分，可能表现为膳食纤维。本研究调查了 PD 补充剂对接受 0.5% PD 日粮补充的断奶仔猪生长性能、肠道形态、短链脂肪酸 (SCFA) 和细菌群落的影响。与断奶（对照组）仔猪相比，PD（治疗）组的仔猪表现出更高的抗氧化能力和饲料效率（P < 0.05），以及改善的肠道形态。通过对早期断奶仔猪的回肠内容物和粪便进行 16S rRNA 测序来评估肠道微生物群特征。响应于 PD 治疗，观察到几个属水平的富集和消耗。值得注意的是，补充 PD 降低了病原生物的相对丰度，包括 Defluviicoccus 和 Gardnerella，同时显着增加了共生细菌（Psychrobacter 和 Prevotella 属）的相对丰度，它们在营养吸收和免疫反应调节中具有重要作用。PD 治疗组最显着的效果是增加了经 PD 治疗的断奶仔猪粪便中 SCFA 的产生。相关性分析表明，SCFAs的改善与产生SCFA的细菌的增加呈正相关。总的来说，这项研究提供了对 PD 补充剂对粪便微生物群落的影响以及早期断奶仔猪 SCFA 产生的调节的更全面的理解，