Dietary coated copper and zinc improve growth performance by modulating immune responses and fecal microbiota of weaned pigs

In the swine industry, supplementation with high levels of zinc oxide and copper sulfate in the weaner diet could be excreted through feces without being normally absorbed in the intestine, resulting in environmental pollution. Therefore, the various forms have been proposed to address this issue. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of a low dietary dose of coated copper sulfate (CuSO4) and zinc oxide (ZnO) on growth performance, frequency of diarrhea, nutrient digestibility, and immune responses of weaned pigs. The four dietary treatments were (1) a basal weaner diet based on corn and soybean meal (CON), (2) CON supplemented with 2,500 ppm standard ZnO (T1), (3) CON supplemented with 100 mg/kg dietary coated CuSO4 and 100 mg/kg dietary coated ZnO (T2), and (4) CON supplemented with 200 mg/kg dietary coated CuSO4 and 200 mg/kg dietary coated ZnO (T3). Dietary T2 and T3 increased (p p p p p Limosilacatobacilus (p p Agathobacter compared to those fed CON and dietary T1 and decreased (p Terrisporobacter compared to those fed dietary T1. These results suggested the supplementation of dietary coated ZnO and CuSO4 enhanced growth performance and modulated immune responses associated with changes in the fecal microbiota composition