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This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) All Versions of this Article: jas.2006-523v1 85/12/3294    most recent Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Simard, F. Articles by Matte, J. J. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Simard, F. Articles by Matte, J. J.

Effects of concentrations of cyanocobalamin in the gestation diet on some criteria of vitamin B₁₂ metabolism in first-parity sows^1,2

F. Simard^*,, F. Guay^*, C. L. Girard, A. Giguère, J.-P. Laforest^* and J. J. Matte^,3

^* Département des Sciences Animales, Université Laval, Québec, Québec, Canada G1K 7P4; and Maple Leaf Animal Nutrition, Lévis, Québec G6W 5M6, Canada; and and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Dairy and Swine Research and Development Centre, Sherbrooke, Québec, Canada J1M 1Z3

³ Corresponding author: mattej{at}agr.gc.ca

In swine nutrition, little is known about the role of vitamin B₁₂ in the reproductive processes. The current study was undertaken to obtain information on the dose-response pattern of different metabolic criteria related to the homeostasis of vitamin B₁₂ and homocysteine in gestating sows receiving various concentrations of dietary vitamin B₁₂ (cyanocobalamin). Homocysteine is a detrimental intermediate metabolite of the vitamin B₁₂-dependent remethylation pathway of Met. Forty nulliparous (Large White x Landrace) sows were randomly assigned during gestation to dietary treatments containing 5 concentrations of cyanocobalamin (0, 20, 100, 200, or 400 µg/kg). During lactation, a diet containing 25 µg of cyanocobalamin/kg (as-fed) was given to all sows. During gestation, plasma vitamin B₁₂ increased as concentrations of dietary cyanocobalamin increased (linear and quadratic, P < 0.01) and the effect persisted during lactation (21 d postpartum) both in plasma (linear and quadratic, P < 0.05) and the liver (linear and quadratic, P < 0.04). Plasma homocysteine decreased with concentrations of cyanocobalamin provided to sows during gestation (linear, quadratic, and cubic, P < 0.01). At parturition, vitamin B₁₂ in colostrum increased as concentrations of cyanocobalamin increased (linear and quadratic, P < 0.01), but the treatment effect persisted (linear, P = 0.01) only up to 1 d postfarrowing. However, in piglets there was no treatment effect (P = 0.59) on plasma vitamin B₁₂ before colostrum intake, but a linear effect of concentrations of cyanocobalamin (P = 0.04) was observed 1 d later. Plasma homocysteine in piglets during lactation decreased with increasing concentrations of cyanocobalamin given to sows in gestation (linear and quadratic, P < 0.01). Based on a broken-line regression model, the concentrations of dietary cyanocobalamin that maximized plasma vitamin B₁₂ and minimized plasma homocysteine of sows during gestation were estimated to be 164 and 93 µg/kg, respectively. The maximal residual responses in sows and piglets during lactation were observed with treatments of 100 or 200 µg of cyanocobalamin/kg. The dietary cyanocobalamin concentration necessary to optimize the response of these metabolic criteria remains to be refined within lower and narrower ranges of cyanocobalamin concentrations (i.e., <200 mg/kg). Moreover, the biological significance of such concentrations of cyanocobalamin needs to be validated with performance criteria by using greater numbers of animals during several parities.

Key Words: gestation • gilt • homocysteine • milk • piglet • vitamin B₁₂