Consumption of ergot alkaloids by livestock results in reduced feed intake and growth and a dramatic reduction in the hormone prolactin, which is important for milk production in sows. Previous research at the PSC demonstrated that extreme processing in the form of steam explosion reduced ergot toxicity, however, it is not always practical. Therefore, this trial set out to utilize extrusion as an example of a more commonly used processing technique to determine potential effects on ergot toxicity in growing pigs. A total of 160 grow-finisher pigs were fed 1 of 4 dietary treatments for 56 days in a 2 x 2 factorial design with main effects of ergot level (0 or 4000 ppb) and extruded or not.
Extrusion changed the ergot alkaloid chemistry, specifically a decrease in the R:S epimer ratio. Pigs fed ergot had decreased growth in phase 1 and overall. There was a tendency for reduced feed intake when the pigs were initially fed the ergot contaminated diets, and a significant decrease from d 29 to 42, throughout phase 2 and overall. There was no effect of ergot on feed efficiency. There were no ergot by extrusion interactions. Serum prolactin was reduced dramatically in the pigs receiving the ergot contaminated feed, however, there was no effect of extrusion, and no ergot by extrusion interaction.
The available data indicates that extrusion does not reduce ergot toxicity. The dramatic decline observed in serum prolactin observed with ergot alkaloids in the diet indicates that these diets should not be fed to gilts or sows used for reproductive purposes.
The use of extrusion to reduce dietary ergot toxicity in growing pigs (full article)
