{"id":56508,"date":"2019-01-11T00:00:32","date_gmt":"2019-01-11T00:00:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.zinpro.com\/heat-stress-performance-trace-minerals-swine-gut-health\/"},"modified":"2023-08-16T12:10:33","modified_gmt":"2023-08-16T17:10:33","slug":"heat-stress-performance-trace-minerals-swine-gut-health","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.zinpro.com\/en_na\/resource-center\/blog\/heat-stress-performance-trace-minerals-swine-gut-health\/","title":{"rendered":"Heat Stress, Performance Trace Minerals & Swine Gut Health"},"content":{"rendered":"

Heat stress can result in significant economic costs to your livestock operation. For example, it is estimated that the annual cost of heat stress in the U.S. swine industry is $900 million (Pollmann, 2013). Of that, about $450 million is in the grow-finish stage and about $450 million is in the breeding herd.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Based on these estimates, it should come as no surprise that investments in on-farm cooling systems are highly prevalent. However, cooling systems may not always be economically feasible and mechanical failure can cause unplanned heat-stress events.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Heat Stress: What\u2019s Happening Inside the Animal?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

When an animal experiences heat stress, its core body temperature increases causing blood flow to be diverted from visceral tissue \u2014 tissue that lines the blood vessels, stomach, digestive tract and other internal organs \u2014 to the skin surface to increase heat dissipation. As blood flow is reduced to the visceral tissue, this causes a reduction in the amount of oxygen (hypoxia) and energy available to the enterocytes (single layer of epithelial cells) lining the intestinal tract. When this occurs, tight junctions that hold the enterocytes together can weaken, allowing pathogens and their toxins to transfer into the bloodstream, ultimately leading to a condition called leaky gut.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With the onset of heat stress, we know animals often experience a marked reduction in feed intake, which has been hypothesized as a mechanism to help reduce metabolic heat. While a large contributor to lost performance under heat stress, this reduction in feed intake may only partially explain why animals under heat stress have decreased performance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition, a higher respiration rate from the animals trying to cool themselves results in the production of oxygen and nitrogenous free radicals, which can weaken or destroy the intestine\u2019s tight junctions. Severe heat stress may lead to morphological changes in the intestine, such as decreased gut villi height, greater gut villi width and potentially a breakdown of the tight junctions of the enterocytes. The intestine may become vulnerable to transfer of lipopolysaccharides (LPS), or endotoxins, across the intestinal wall and into circulation causing immune system activation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Zinc: A Key Trace Mineral For Tight Junctions<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Several research studies have established that the trace mineral zinc<\/a> plays a key role in maintaining intestinal integrity by strengthening the tight junctions during challenges. Research has shown that zinc upregulates tight junction proteins and heat shock proteins. Furthermore, zinc is an antioxidant, and oxidative stress may play a key role in initiating leaky gut. The research has also shown that the form of zinc fed influences its effectiveness at reducing leaky gut.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Iowa State University conducted a study to demonstrate how acute heat stress conditions contribute to leaky gut. Results showed that feeding performance trace minerals such as Availa\u00ae<\/sup> Zn<\/a> helps decrease the occurrence of leaky gut by improving the viability and integrity of the intestinal system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this study, thirty-two crossbred pigs with an initial weight of 63 kg (140 pounds) were randomly assigned to one of four treatments:<\/p>\n\n\n\n