Low to moderate dietary n-6:n-3 PUFA ratios do not affect performanceof grower-finisher pigs

摘要

Dietary fatty acids are potent mediators of physiological processes related to body composition and development. Previous findings by Wilkinson et al. (2014) identified that pigs fed diets with a high n-6:n-3 (24:1) polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) ratio showed significantly reduced performance and increased health challenges when compared to pigs fed diets with moderate and low ratios of n-6: n-3 PUFA. Additionally, there is conjecture as to the effect of low n-6:n-3 PUFA ratios on the feed intakeand growth performance of growing pigs. Despite the known physiological importance of n-6 and n-3 PUFA, no dietary recommendations for the n-6.n-3 PUFA ratio arc available to pig nutritionists. This study investigated the effect of low to moderate n-b.n-3 PUFA ratios on the performance of grower-finisher pigs. It was hypothesised that feed intake and performance would be similar between groups fed low to moderate n-6.n-3 PUFA ratios.