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Acta Prataculturae Sinica ›› 2011, Vol. 20 ›› Issue (4): 210-218.

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Effects of alfalfa saponins on the lipid metabolism, antioxidation and immunity of weaned piglets

WANG Cheng-zhang1, WANG Yan-hua1,2, SHI Ying-hua1, YAN Xue-bing1, HE Yun3, FAN Wen-na1   

  1. 1.College of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Science of Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450002, China;
    2.Forage and Feed Station of Henan Province, Zhengzhou 450008, China;
    3.College of Animal Science of Henan Institute of Science and Technology, Xinxiang 453003, China
  • Received:2010-06-11 Online:2011-04-25 Published:2011-08-20

Abstract: To evaluate the effects of alfalfa (Medicago sativa) saponins on lipid metabolism, antioxidation and immunity of weaned piglets, the piglets were weaned at 3 weeks when the average body weight was 9.2 kg. They were divided into four treatments, three replicates per treatment and four piglets per replicate in a complete random single factorial design. The levels of alfalfa saponins were 0% (control group), 0.25% (groupⅠ), 0.50% (group Ⅱ), and 1.00% (group Ⅲ). 1) Triglycercide (TG) contents of the three trial groups of blood serum were significantly lower than that of the control group, and that of group Ⅲ was very significantly lower than that of the control group (P<0.01), but alfalfa saponins had no effects on the liver TG content; The total cholesterol (T-CHO) content of the trial groups blood serum were very significantly lower than that of the control group (P<0.01), but high density lipoprotein cholesterine (HDL-CHO) content of blood serum was significantly higher than that of the control group while low density lipoprotein cholesterine (LDL-CHO) content was the opposite of HDL-CHO. When the piglets were fed with alfalfa saponins, the number of TG of liver was significantly reduced (P<0.05), that of HDL-CHO increased, but cholesterol content of the eye muscle decreased. 2) As the alfalfa saponins levels increased, glutathione peroxidase(GSH-Px) activity increased, and those of group Ⅱ, Ⅲ were significantly higher than that of the control group, but malonaldehyde (MDA) content was the opposite (P>0.05). 3) Contents of total protein (TP) and albumin (ALB) of blood serum were improved when the piglets were fed with alfalfa saponins, however, there were no significant differences among trial groups and the control group; IgG contents of trial groups were very significantly (P<0.01) higher than that of the control group, indicating that alfalfa saponins can improve the immunity of weaned piglets. The suitable alfalfa saponins contents were useful for reducing cholesterol content of blood serum, liver and eye muscle, adjusting the lipid metabolism, and improving the oxidation resistance and immune function.

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