ISSUE FOCUS FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE January 2023 33 es identified. The most abundant bacterial families in the pig's caecum and colon were Prevotellaceae (22.3%), Lactobacillaceae (17.9%), Lachnospiraceae (8.9%), Clostridiaceae (5.8%), Bacteroidaceae (5.4%), Veillonellaceae (5.4%) and Ruminococcaceae (3.7%), as reported by Tröscher-Mußotter et al, (2019). PREBIOTICS A prebiotic is defined as “a selectively fermented ingredient that results in specific changes in the composition and/or activity of gastrointestinal microbiota, thus conferring benefit(s) on host health” (Gibson et al., 2010). Prebiotic food components must be resistant to gastric acidity and hydrolysis by mammalian enzymes and subsequent gastrointestinal absorption, subject to fermentation by intestinal microflora and selectively stimulate the growth and/or activity of the intestinal bacteria that contribute to health and wellbeing of the host (Gibson and Roberfroid, 2017). With regulatory and societal pressures leading to the removal of infeed antibiotics and therapeutic levels of zinc oxide from diets in animal nutrition industries around the world, the use of prebiotics to confer positive effects on GI health through the modulation of the gut microbiome presents a valuable opportunity for farmers to sustainably enhance animal health and production efficiencies. SEAWEED Seaweeds, or marine macroalgae, have long been of interest for human and animal nutrition, due to their range of bioactive components such as minerals, vitamins, polysaccharides, proteins, lipids, pigments, carotenoids and polyphenols (Kumar et al., 2008). Macroalgae can be divided into 3 main groups, based on their pigmentation: • Phaeophyta (brown); for example Ascophyllum, Laminaria • Chlorophyta (green); for example Ulva, Cladophora • Rhodophyta (red); for example Chondrus, Gracilaria Collectively there are over 10,000 known species of macroalgae, although less than 300 of these species are commonly commercially used (White and Wilson, 2015). The compounds present in seaweed possess a number of biological properties with beneficial activities for both human and animal health, including antimicrobial, antioxidant, antiviral and an-
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTUxNjkxNQ==