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A Long Term Study on the Health Status and Performance of Sows on Different Feed Allowances during Late Pregnancy
En långtidsstudie rörande hälsotillstånd och produktionsresultat hos suggor på olika fodergivor under sen dräktighet: II. Det totala cellinnehållet samt den procentuella andelen polymorjkärniga leukocyter i kolostrum och mjölk
II. The total cell content and its percentage of polymorphonuclear leucocytes in pathogen-free colostrum and milk collected from clinically healthy sows
Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica volume 37, pages 279–291 (1996)
Abstract
The main objective of this study was to determine the total cell content, TCC, and the percentage of polymorphonuclear leucocytes, PMNLs, in colostrum and milk collected from sows during the first 22 days of lactation. The pH-values during the same sampling period were also determined. It should be emphasized that all the values obtained emanate from bacteriologically negative colostrum and milk. The potential influence of different levels of late gestation feeding regimes was also evaluated.
The TCC-values obtained from milk samples during the first 3 weeks of lactation and exceeding the designated threshold of 10×106 cells/ml varied between 4% and 21%. Within the TCC-limitation of 10-19.99×l06 cells/ml neither the preceding nor the succeeding cell counts exceeded the threshold in 26.8%. TCC-values above 19.99×l06 cells/ml were preceded and succeeded by cell counts below the threshold in 58.8% and 58.8%, respectively.
The TCC-levels below the threshold of 10×106 cells/ml, expressed as geometric least square means, increased significantly from day 1 to day 3 (1.23×l06 cells/ml versus 1.86×106 cells/ml) and decreased thereafter gradually to day 22 (1.38×106 cells/ml). When all values were included, the TCC-values increased in a similar pattern from day 1 to day 3 (1.38×106 cells/ml versus 3.18×106 cells/ml). The value on day 22 of lactation was still on a significantly elevated level compared with that of day 1 (2.10×106 cells/ml versus 1.38×106 cells/ml).
The 2 different feeding regimes were not found to influence the TCC-values during the first 22 days of lactation.
In the whole material the PMNL-values, expressed as percentages of the TCC, declined from approximately 60% on day 1 of lactation to between 40% and 50% for the remaining sampling period. This decline was comparable with the one seen in the cell class below the threshold of 10×106 cells/ml. In the 2 cell classes above 9.99×106 cells/ml, 78.0% and 88.8% of PMNLs on day 1 declined to about 40% on day 22. This might indicate an inflammatory response on day 1 but without any detectable bacteriological growth.
The increase in lactation number, if lactation 1 was compared with the following lactations, revealed a significant rise (p<0.05) in TCC-level and percentage level of PMNLs. A stepwise and significant increase in pH-level occurred between days 1, 3 and 8 (6.18, 6.56, 7.03) followed by a significant decrease to day 22 (6.91) when pH-values from milk of all cell classes were included.
Sammanfattning
Undersökningen har till syfte att beskriva det totala cellinnehållet, TCC, och dess procentuella andel polymorfkärniga leukocyter, PMNL, i suggans kolostrum och mjölk vid fyra provtagningstillfallen under de första 3 veckorna av laktationen. pH bestämdes också i dessa sekret när så var möjligt. Modersuggorna undersöktes under 6 på varandra följande laktationer. Det bör speciellt påpekas att man vid bakteriologisk odling från mjölkproven inte kunde påvisa någon växt.
Trots negativt bakteriologiskt provsvar överskreds gränsvärdet 10×106 celler/ml i 4–21% av celltalsbestämningarna. Dessa höga celltalsvärden föregicks eller efterföljdes i ett flertal fall av värden som var lägre än det uppsatta gränsvärdet. De förhöjda celltalsvärdena tolkades som att juverdelen endast tillfälligtvis tillåtits avsina eller eventuellt varit utsatt för ett inflammatoriskt stimuli.
TCC i kolostrum och mjölk ökade signifikant mellan dag 1 och 3, från 1,23×106 celler/ml till 1,86×106 celler/ml och minskade därefter fram till dag 22 till 1,38×106 celler/ml. Motsvarande celltalsnivåer, när alla mätvärden inkluderades, uppmättes till 1,38×106, 3,18×106 och 2,10×106 celler/ml respektive. TCC på dag 22 (2,10×106 celler/ml) var signifikant högre än dag 1.
Den procentuella andelen PMNL, uppgick till 60 på dag 1 och sjönk sedan signifikant till en nivå varierande mellan 40–50. Procentandelen PMNL förblev oförändrad oavsett om alla mätvärden inkluderades eller om man inskränkte analysen till värden erhållna ur gruppen <10×106 celler/ml. Om man endast utförde beräkningar från mätvärden > 19,99×106 celler/ml, fann man att andelen PMNL uppgick till 88,8% på dag 1 och hade sjunkit till 61,5% på dag 8. De två olika utfodringsnivåerna, under senare delen av dräktigheten, tycktes inte ha haft någon påverkan på det totala cellinnehållet, TCC, i kolostrum eller mjölk eller på procentandelen PMNL under de första 3 veckorna av laktationen.
Med stigande laktationsnummer påvisades en signifikant stegring av TCC och procentandelen PMNL. Dessa signifikanta förändringar kunde utläsas som en ökning mellan laktation 1 och de därefter i nummerföljd kommande laktationerna.
pH-värdena i kolstrum och mjölk uppmätta ur gruppen “alla celltalsvärden” steg gradvis och signifikant mellan dag 1,3 och 8; 6,18, 6,56 och 7,03 respektive. Dag 22 uppmättes pH till 6,91, vilket var en signifikant sänkning.
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Acknowledgment
This work was supported by grants from the Swedish Council for Forestry and Agriculture Research and from the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences.
The authors wish to thank Professor Stig Einarsson and Professor Göran Åström for valuable advice and many fruitful discussions; Miss Catharina Falkenberg for showing such endurance with all the labora- tive work through the long period of 4 years when all the milk samples were collected. Dr. Nils Lundeheim and Dr. Ulf Emanuelsson are also especially thanked for their advice concerning the statistical performance and evaluation.
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Persson, A., Pedersen Mörner, A. & Kuhl, W. A Long Term Study on the Health Status and Performance of Sows on Different Feed Allowances during Late Pregnancy. Acta Vet Scand 37, 279–291 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1186/BF03548095
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/BF03548095