• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
• /
• v.25 no.9
• /
• pp.1255-1261
• /
• 2012

Thirty two Holstein female calves (initial body weight = $40{\pm}3.0$ kg) were used to investigate the effects of probiotic and prebiotic on average daily gain (ADG), fecal E. coli count, white blood cell count, plasma IgG1 level and cell-mediated immune response to injection of phytohemagglutinin in suckling female calves. Calves were assigned randomly to one of the four treatments, including whole milk without additives (control), whole milk containing probiotic, whole milk containing prebiotic and whole milk containing probiotic and prebiotic (synbiotic). Average daily gain was greater in calves fed probiotic, prebiotic and synbiotic at weeks 6, 7 and 8 (p<0.05). E. coli count was significantly lower in calves fed probiotic, prebiotic and synbiotic on d 56 (p<0.05). There was no significant difference between treatments in blood samples and cell-mediated response. This study showed that addition of probiotic, prebiotic and combination of these additives to milk enhanced ADG and reduced fecal E. coli count in preruminant calves.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
• /
• v.13 no.8
• /
• pp.1178-1187
• /
• 2000

Many immunostimulating substances have been developed to improve immunity of domestic animals, although their exact mode of action and effects are not clearly defined, and they are now widely used in feed industry. Bacterial lipopolysaccharides, called endotoxin, in particular may have a profound effect not only on the immune system but also on macrophages of the reticuloendothelial system. Glucans from a variety of yeast cell wall have been shown to stimulate both specific and non-specific immune responses and to increase growth performance in pigs. Recently, there has been great interest in the role of complex carbohydrates in disease prevention and treatment. Mannanoligosaccharide is a glucomannoprotein complex derived from the cell wall of yeast. Generally, it was also known that the deficiencies of some major vitamins (vitamin A, E and C) and minerals (chromium and selenium) lead to impaired immune system and, as a result, immune function is depressed and recovery delayed. On the other hand, many researchers suggested that one possible reason for the superior performance observed in pigs fed plasma protein may be because of the presence of biologically active plasma proteins (e.g., immunoglobulins) which are known to contribute to the health of the starter pig. And, immunoglobulins present in plasma protein have been implicated as contributing to the overall immunocompetence of the newborn pig. Other immunostimulants, lactoferrin and lysozyme, mainly found in milk and egg white, have been known as having bacteriocidal and bacteriolytic effect. When considering practical use of immunostimulants, the concept of using immunostimulants is new to many people and, in most cases, it is poorly understood how and why such compounds act, and how they should be used in practice. Therefore, in order to clarify the reason for discrepancies in results, special attention should be paid to the dose/response relationship of immunostimulants and the duration of the effect.