Production of epidermal growth factor expressing Lactococcus Lactis and its potential for enhancing early-weaned piglet growth

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Disturbed digestive function and the associated reductions in growth rates during the period immediately after weaning is one of the major problems in nursery pig management. Piglets experience stress during this period, largely due to changes in food composition, leading to a damaged mucosa and to reduce nutrient digestion and absorption.  As a result, more substrate it available for enteric pathogenic bacteria and piglets become more susceptible to infection and diarrhea. Developing a diet to stimulate intestinal development of early weaned pigs may help to optimize their performance in this critical stage. Epidermal growth factor (EGF) is known to stimulate the development of intestine and its supplementation into formulas was shown to facilitate the recovery of intestines in piglets from rotavirus infection. We hypothesized that locally deliver EGF to the GI tract using food-grade Lactococcus Lactis may be beneficial for improving early-weaned piglet performance. We will use a genetic engineering approach to generate Lactococcus Lactis that secrets epidermal growth factor and test if including these EGF delivering bacteria into feed enhances piglet intestinal development, and thus, early-weaned piglet performance. This is the first study using the in vivo approach to deliver recombinant factors that are beneficial to the livestock animals using food grade bacteria (Lactococcus Lactis) as bioreactor. Successful completion of the project should therefore generate  high quality publications and provide novel opportunities for improving animal production.