The results of the present study showed that supplementing weaned
pig diets with 300 mg/kg or 400 mg/kg curcumin decreased feed/gain
ratio, the crypt depth, plasma D-lactate and DAO, the number of IELs,
mRNA levels of IL-1β, TNF-α and TLR4, but increased villus height, villus
height:crypt depth ratio, GCs, sIgA protein expression, and IL-10 mRNA
expression. Supplementation with 50 mg/kg of quinocetone decreased
feed/gain ratio, the crypt depth and TLR4 mRNA expression, but increased
villus height:crypt depth ratio. This illustrates that curcumin
and the antibiotic have similar effects in improving piglet growth, but
curcumin has a remarkable protective effect on intestinal mucosa barrier.
In conclusion, this study shows that curcumin has the potential as an
alternative for quinocetone in diets fed to weaned piglets. Further study
is warranted to focus on the molecular mechanism of curcumin on
protecting intestinal mucosa barrier in weaned piglets challenged
with ETEC