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. 2012;7(12):e50921.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0050921. Epub 2012 Dec 7.

Impacts of birth weight on plasma, liver and skeletal muscle neutral amino acid profiles and intestinal amino acid transporters in suckling Huanjiang mini-piglets

Huansheng Yang  1 , Dezhi Fu, Hua Shao, Xiangfeng Kong, Wence Wang, Xiaojian Yang, Charles M Nyachoti, Yulong Yin
Affiliations

Impacts of birth weight on plasma, liver and skeletal muscle neutral amino acid profiles and intestinal amino acid transporters in suckling Huanjiang mini-piglets

Huansheng Yang et al. PLoS One. 2012.

Abstract

Genetic selection strategies towards increased prolificacy have resulted in more and more increased littler size and incidences of impaired fetal development. Low birth weight (LBW) piglets, with long-term alterations in structure, physiology and metabolism, have lower survival rates and poor growth performance. The aim of the study was to compare the plasma, liver and skeletal muscle contents of neutral amino acids (NAA) and the intestinal expression of NAA transporters between LBW and high birth weight (HBW) suckling Huanjiang mini-piglets. Forty piglets with either LBW or HBW (20 piglets per group) were sampled on day 0, 7, 14 and 21 of age to give 5 observations per day per group. The contents of NAA in plasma, liver and skeletal muscle were measured, and jejunal expression of transporters for NAA, including Slc6a19 (B(0)AT1) and Slc1a5 (ASCT2), were determined by real-time RT-PCR and Western Blot, respectively. Results showed that the suckling piglets with LBW had higher contents of Thr, Ser, Gly, Ala, Val, Met, Ile, Leu, Tyr, Phe and Pro in liver, and Gly in skeletal muscle, whereas lower contents of Met, Ser and Ala in plasma when compared with the HBW littermates. Consistent with the content differences in plasma NAA, the jejunal expression profiles of both Slc6a19 (B(0)AT1) and Slc1a5 (ASCT2) in the LBW piglets were lower in compared with the HBW littermates during the early suckling period. These findings suggested that intestinal dysfunction in the LBW piglets may be one of the reasons in altered physiology and metabolism states of other organs, which result in lower survival and growth rate.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. mRNA levels of jejunum Slc6a19 (A) and Slc1a5 (B) in sucking Huanjiang mini-piglets with HBW1 or LBW2 from days 0 to 21 of age.
Samples were obtained from Huanjiang mini-pigs on Days 0, 7, 14 and 21 of age, respectively. The mRNA expression levels of Slc6a19 and Slc1a5 were normalized using GAPDH as an inner control. Values without a common letter on bars differ (P<0.05). The P value showed the effects of age, BW, and age and BW interaction on mRNA expressiong of Slc6a19 and Slc1a5. Data are expressed as mean ± SD, n = 5. 1HBW, high birth weight; 2LBW, low birth weight.
Figure 2
Figure 2. Protein abundances of jejunum B0AT1 (A) and ASCT2 (B) in sucking Huanjiang mini-piglets with HBW1 and LBW2 from days 0 to 21 of age.
Samples were obtained from Huanjiang mini-pigs on Days 0, 7, 14 and 21 of age, respectively. The protein amounts of B0AT1 and ASCT2 were normalized using β-actin as an inner control. Values without a common letter on bars differ (P<0.05). The P value showed the effects of age, BW, and age and BW interaction on protein expressiong of B0AT1 and ASCT2. Data are expressed as mean ± SD, n = 5. 1HBW, high birth weight; 2LBW, low birth weight.
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Grants and funding

This study was jointly supported by the National Basic Research Program of China (2012CB124704), National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 31110103909, 30901040, 30928018, and 31101729), National Scientific and Technology Support Project (2011BAD26B002-5) and Chinese Academy of Sciences Visiting Professorship for Senior International Scientists Grant No.2011T2S15. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.