Effects of supplementing low-protein diets with sodium dichloroacetate and glucose on growth performance, carcass traits, and meat quality of growing-finishing pigs

Yetong Xu, Huiyuan Chen, Ke Wan, Kaifeng Zhou, Yongsheng Wang, Jigang Li, Zhiru Tang, Weizhong Sun, Liuting Wu, Rui An, Zhongxiang Ren, Qi Ding, Kaiyang Liang, Zhihong Sun

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of supplementing low-protein diets with sodium dichloroacetate (DCA) and glucose on growth performance, carcass traits, and meat quality of growing-finishing pigs. A total of 80 crossbred (Duroc × Landrace × Large White) growing barrows (27 ± 0.4 kg body weight) were allocated randomly to one of the five treatments during three successive 4-wk periods. There were five diets in each phase. Diet 1 was the control diet with normal protein levels (CON) where protein levels in the three phases were 18%, 16.5%, and 15.5%, respectively. The dietary protein levels of Diets 2, 3, 4, and 5 (the low-protein diets, LP) were decreased by 4.5% compared to Diet 1. Additionally, Diets 3 and 4 were supplemented with an extra 120 mg/kg DCA (LP + DCA) or 1.8% glucose (LP + GLUC), respectively. Diet 5 was further supplemented with an extra 120 mg/kg DCA and 1.8% glucose (LP + DCA + GLUC). The LP + DCA diet increased the average daily weight gain of pigs compared to the CON and LP diet in phase 3 and the overall experimental period (P < 0.001). The LP diet reduced the gain:feed ratios of the pigs compared to the CON, LP + DCA, and LP + DCA + GLUC diets in phase 1 and the overall experimental period (P < 0.001). Furthermore, gain:feed ratios in LP + DCA and LP + DCA + GLUC groups did not differ from that of the CON group (P > 0.10). Pigs fed the LP + DCA diet had higher pH values of meat at 24 h post-mortem than the CON group (P < 0.05). The LP + DCA + GLUC diet increased the total protein content in the longissimus dorsi (LD) muscle of pigs, compared to the other dietary treatments (P < 0.05), and increased the Arg and Leu contents in the LD muscle compared to the LP + DCA diet (P < 0.05). Moreover, the LP + DCA diet induced a higher C18:1n9t percentage in the LD muscle of pigs compared to other groups (P < 0.05). In conclusion, an LP diet reduced the feed efficiency in pigs and barely affected meat quality, whereas 120 mg/kg DCA supplementation in an LP diet improved the growth performance of growing-finishing pigs, showed modest effects on carcass traits, and improved the muscle protein content with the addition of glucose.