Effect of Fumonisin-Contaminated Corn on Growth Performance of 20- to 60-lb Nursery Pigs

Z. X. Rao, M. D. Tokach, S. S. Dritz, J. C. Woodworth, J. M. DeRouchey, R. D. Goodband, H. Calderon Cartagena
2019 Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Reports  
This experiment was conducted to determine the effect of feeding fumonisin (FUM) contaminated corn on growth performance of 20-to 60-lb nursery pigs. A total of 350 pigs (241 × 600; DNA, Columbus, NE; initially 19.6 lb) were used. Dietary treatments consisted of FUM-contaminated corn blended with relatively FUM-free corn to provide toxin (FB1 + FB2) of 7.2, 14.7, 21.9, 32.7, and 35.1 ppm. Experimental diets were fed in mash form for 28 d. There were 5 pigs per pen and 14 replicates per
more » ... . After weaning, pigs were fed common diets for 21 days before the experiment started. Then, pens were assigned to treatments in a randomized complete block design with initial weight as the blocking factor. From d 0 to 28, increasing FUM decreased (linear, P < 0.001) average daily gain (ADG) and final body weight (BW) and average daily feed intake (ADFI; linear, P = 0.05). Feed efficiency (F/G) became poorer as FUM increased (linear, P = 0.01). Although tested linear, the greatest reduction in ADG was observed in pigs fed greater than 21.9 ppm of FUM. Increasing FUM increased serum sphinganine (Sa) and sphingosine (So) ratios (linear, P < 0.001) on day 14 and 28, which corresponded with the decreased growth performance. Data indicated that the serum Sa:So ratio is a reliable biomarker indicating FUM intoxication. These results suggest that for 20-to 60-lb nursery pigs, diets containing more than 30 ppm of FUM should not be fed, as increasing FUM concentration worsens growth performance and increases serum Sa:So ratio. Furthermore, diets containing greater than 21.9 ppm should be evaluated with caution as further research is warranted to deter-mine the fumonisin concentration between 21.9 and 30 ppm where the negative effects on pig performance are observed.
doi:10.4148/2378-5977.7843 fatcat:72pnjrw6tnbzhhauch4l4syhdi