What question did this study set out to answer?

The aim is to evaluate the impact of dietary deoxynivalenol on the growth performance of nursery pigs.

July 13, 2026Open Access

Dose-Response Effects of Corn-Derived Deoxynivalenol on Nursery Pig Feed Intake and Growth Performance

Key Points

The aim is to evaluate the impact of dietary deoxynivalenol on the growth performance of nursery pigs.
112 pigs were assigned to seven dietary treatments with varying DON concentrations (0.2 to 5.1 mg/kg).
Growth performance was measured over a 24-day period in two phases (Phase 1: d 0-14; Phase 2: d 14-24).
Data analysis included linear regression to establish relationships between DON levels and performance metrics.
Increasing DON levels led to a linear reduction in final BW, ADG, and ADFI (P < 0.001).
A 1 mg/kg increase in DON resulted in a 1.13 kg decrease in BW, a 0.04 kg/d decrease in ADG, and a 0.07 kg/d decrease in ADFI.
No biological breakpoint or significant quadratic responses were found (P > 0.100).

Abstract

Abstract Deoxynivalenol (DON) is a trichothecene mycotoxin commonly contaminating swine diets and is known to impair nursery pig performance through anorectic effects. The objective of this study was to characterize the dose-response effects of increasing dietary DON concentrations (0.2 to 5.1 mg/kg) that were naturally added through increasing levels of DON-contaminated corn on growth performance in modern nursery pigs using a seven-point titration design. A total of 112 pigs (9.1 ± 0.37 kg BW) were assigned to one of seven dietary treatments (n = 8 pens/treatment; 2 pigs/pen) and fed experimental diets for 24 d (Phase 1: d 0-14; Phase 2: d 14-24). Growth performance declined linearly during both Phase 1 and Phase 2 (P 0.001). Across the 24-d period, increasing DON reduced overall BW, ADG, and ADFI in a linear manner (P 0.001), with no quadratic responses detected (P 0.100) DON concentration explained 39%, 48%, and 58% of the variation in final BW, ADG, and ADFI, respectively. Each 1 mg/kg increase in DON was associated with a 1.13 kg reduction in final BW, a 0.04 kg/d reduction in ADG, and a 0.07 kg/d reduction in ADFI. Overall Gain:Feed was not linearly related to DON concentration (P = 0.214). Two-segmented and linear-plateau regression analysis provided minimal improvement over linear models, indicating limited to no evidence for a biological breakpoint within the evaluated range. These findings demonstrate a clear, linear, dose-dependent suppression of voluntary feed intake and growth performance in nursery pigs exposed to 0.2 to 5.1 mg/kg DON, without evidence of a discrete intake threshold.

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