Continuous fermentation-derived fecal microbiota transplantation improves intestinal barrier function and reshapes gut microbiota in weaned piglets
- 1College of Animal Science, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taigu, 030800 China
- 2State Key Laboratory for Quality and Safety of Agro-Products, Institute of Food Sciences, Zhejiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hangzhou, 310021 China
- 3Shanxi Provincial Key Laboratory of Livestock and Poultry Genetic Resources Exploration and Biotechnology Breeding, Taigu, 030800 China
Abstract
Weaning diarrhea in piglets poses a serious threat to the healthy development of the swine industry and is closely associated with gut microbiota dysbiosis. Fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT), as an effective strategy for modulating intestinal microecology, remains underexplored in swine production, particularly regarding the systematic evaluation of fecal microbiota suspension prepared via continuous fermentation on piglet health. In this study, fecal microbiota suspensions derived from adult pigs and piglets were prepared using a continuous fermentation system. A 28-day feeding trial was conducted with 18 piglets randomly assigned to three groups: control (CON), adult pig-derived FMT(FMT-A), and piglet-derived FMT(FMT-P). Growth performance, diarrhea incidence, gut microbiota, fecal short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), and serum immune/inflammatory cytokines were measured. The results showed that compared with CON, both FMT treatments significantly increased average daily gain (ADG) and reduced diarrhea rate (P < 0.05), with FMT-A exhibiting superior effects to FMT-P. FMT improved intestinal barrier function, as evidenced by reduced serum levels of endotoxin (ET) and D-lactic acid (D-LA), raised immunoglobulin G (IgG) and anti-inflammatory cytokine interleukin-10 (IL-10), and lowered pro-inflammatory cytokines interleukin-1β (IL-1β) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) (P < 0.05). FMT-A significantly reduced diamine oxidase (DAO) and increased immunoglobulin M (IgM) and immunoglobulin A (IgA) (P < 0.05). 16S rDNA sequencing revealed that FMT reshaped the intestinal microbiota: FMT-A enhanced microbial uniformity, FMT-P improved richness; both tended to increase beneficial Lactobacillus, with FMT-A significantly increasing Firmicutes(P < 0.05). Furthermore, FMT increased fecal propionic acid and decreased valeric acid (P < 0.05). This study demonstrates the efficacy of fecal microbiota suspension prepared via continuous fermentation technology in improving intestinal health and growth performance of piglets, providing a novel strategy for developing standardized, stable, and active microbe-based interventions, and laying a foundation for further mechanistic understanding of FMT in livestock production.
Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at https://doi.org/10.1186/s42523-026-00598-x.
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BibTeX
@article{chen2026continuous,
title = {{Continuous fermentation-derived fecal microbiota transplantation improves intestinal barrier function and reshapes gut microbiota in weaned piglets}},
author = {Jiaxin Chen and Zhuoya Guo and Mengzhu Liu and Yunheng Wei and Linjun Wu and Jinjun Li and Weiwei Wang},
journal = {Animal Microbiome},
year = {2026},
month = jul,
doi = {10.1186/s42523-026-00598-x},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1186/s42523-026-00598-x},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Continuous fermentation-derived fecal microbiota transplantation improves intestinal barrier function and reshapes gut microbiota in weaned piglets
AU - Jiaxin Chen
AU - Zhuoya Guo
AU - Mengzhu Liu
AU - Yunheng Wei
AU - Linjun Wu
AU - Jinjun Li
AU - Weiwei Wang
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/07/27
JO - Animal Microbiome
DO - 10.1186/s42523-026-00598-x
UR - https://doi.org/10.1186/s42523-026-00598-x
AB - Weaning diarrhea in piglets poses a serious threat to the healthy development of the swine industry and is closely associated with gut microbiota dysbiosis. Fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT), as an effective strategy for modulating intestinal microecology, remains underexplored in swine production, particularly regarding the systematic evaluation of fecal microbiota suspension prepared via continuous fermentation on piglet health. In this study, fecal microbiota suspensions derived from adult pigs and piglets were prepared using a continuous fermentation system. A 28-day feeding trial was conducted with 18 piglets randomly assigned to three groups: control (CON), adult pig-derived FMT(FMT-A), and piglet-derived FMT(FMT-P). Growth performance, diarrhea incidence, gut microbiota, fecal short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), and serum immune/inflammatory cytokines were measured. The results showed that compared with CON, both FMT treatments significantly increased average daily gain (ADG) and reduced diarrhea rate (P < 0.05), with FMT-A exhibiting superior effects to FMT-P. FMT improved intestinal barrier function, as evidenced by reduced serum levels of endotoxin (ET) and D-lactic acid (D-LA), raised immunoglobulin G (IgG) and anti-inflammatory cytokine interleukin-10 (IL-10), and lowered pro-inflammatory cytokines interleukin-1β (IL-1β) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) (P < 0.05). FMT-A significantly reduced diamine oxidase (DAO) and increased immunoglobulin M (IgM) and immunoglobulin A (IgA) (P < 0.05). 16S rDNA sequencing revealed that FMT reshaped the intestinal microbiota: FMT-A enhanced microbial uniformity, FMT-P improved richness; both tended to increase beneficial Lactobacillus, with FMT-A significantly increasing Firmicutes(P < 0.05). Furthermore, FMT increased fecal propionic acid and decreased valeric acid (P < 0.05). This study demonstrates the efficacy of fecal microbiota suspension prepared via continuous fermentation technology in improving intestinal health and growth performance of piglets, providing a novel strategy for developing standardized, stable, and active microbe-based interventions, and laying a foundation for further mechanistic understanding of FMT in livestock production. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at https://doi.org/10.1186/s42523-026-00598-x.
SN - 2524-4671
ER -