Effect of dietary fiber and threonine content on intestinal barrier function in pigs challenged with either systemic E. coli lipopolysaccharide or enteric Salmonella Typhimurium

Abstract

Dietary fiber appears to improve barrier function through increased mucin production capacity (i.e., goblet cell numbers, MUC2 gene expression) and secretion (i.e., fecal mucin output). The lack of effect of dietary Thr in <i>Salmonella</i>-challenged pigs provides further evidence that mucin secretion in the gut is conserved and, therefore, Thr may be limiting for growth under conditions of increased mucin production.