Agriculture (Mar 2023)

The Effect of Dietary Humic Substances on Cellular Immunity and Blood Characteristics in Piglets

  • Lukáš Bujňák,
  • Alena Hreško Šamudovská,
  • Dagmar Mudroňová,
  • Pavel Naď,
  • Slavomír Marcinčák,
  • Iveta Maskaľová,
  • Michaela Harčárová,
  • Viera Karaffová,
  • Martin Bartkovský

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture13030636
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 13, no. 3
p. 636

Abstract

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This study’s objective was to determine the impact of dietary humic substances on immune response and blood profiles in piglets. A total of 24 crossbred piglets (Slovakian White × Landrace; 35 days old; average body weight of 11.67 kg) were allotted to two dietary groups with (experimental; 5 g·kg−1) or without (control; 0 g·kg−1) natural humic substances supplementation. In this study, we observed a significant increase of the proportion of CD4+CD8- lymphocytes (p p < 0.05). Other monitored blood parameters were not significantly affected by dietary treatment. It concluded that inclusion of humic substances in the diet of piglets could have a stimulating effect on cellular immunity, without a negative effect on haematological and biochemical parameters.

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