Arginina na nutrição de matrizes suínas gestantes e seus efeitos sobre a progênie

Abstract

The hyperprolific sows further increased the piglets per gestation with genetic breeding. This fact penalized birth weight and uniformity of litters, as well as increased prenatal and pre-weaning mortality of the piglets and increased the extenuation of the sows during lactation. The objective of this study was to evaluate the supplementation effect with L-arginine in the gestation diet of the sows, from 30 to 60 days and from 80 to 114 days of gestation, on reproductive and productive performance and carcass characteristics and meat quality of the progeny. Forty-eight pluriparous sows were used, from two to six parities with two treatments and 24 replicates per treatment: the treatments consisted of a control diet without L-arginine supplementation and control with L-arginine on top way, being 1.0% of the feed amount. L-arginine supplementation of the gestation diet did not alter the plasmatic concentration of albumin, creatinine and urea, however there was effect for the concentration of these metabolites in different periods of gestation. Piglets’ average weight born alive was positively influenced by L-arginine supplementation; however other reproductive characteristics were not affected by treatments. The percentage of piglets born weighing over 1.81 kg was higher in sows supplemented with L-arginine compared with piglets from sows that did not receive supplementation. The weight at weaning, at the end of the nursery and growing/finishing phase were not affected by L-arginine supplementation. For carcass characteristics and meat quality, there was effect of the supplementation in relation to slaughter weight of the animals, hot and cold carcass weight, temperature at 45 minutes after slaughtering, fat thickness, loin depth, fat area and drip loss. There was no effect of L-arginine supplementation during gestation on the centesimal composition of the Longissimus dorsi muscle, as well as the composition of fatty acids percentage, there was effect of treatment and gender for the lauric acid (C12:0) and an interaction treatment and gender for the estimation of the C18 desaturase activity. L-arginine supplementation in the diet of gestating sows did not influence the area and diameter of muscle fibers of the progeny at slaughter. L-arginine supplementation in the diet of gestating sows increase the average weight of piglets born alive, as well, the percentage of births above 1.81kg. The slaughter weight of the swine from sows supplemented with arginine in the gestation also is influenced positively.