Sophora japonica Extract Supplementation Facilitates Piglets' Early Weaning Transition by Alleviating Intestinal Oxidative Stress, Inflammation, and Microbiota Dysbiosis.

The early weaning of piglets is still widely practiced in modern swine production, although it is frequently associated with intestinal dysfunction, microbiota dysbiosis, and even diarrhea. A total of 126 piglets were randomly allotted to three groups (seven pens per group) and fed either a basal diet, a basal diet supplemented with 0.05% SJE, or a basal diet supplemented with 0.1% SJE. Supplementation with 0.1% SJE effectively decreased fecal scores on days 7 and 14 post-weaning and improved growth performance on day 14 post-weaning in early-weaned piglets. In addition, SJE supplementation improved jejunal morphology, increased antioxidant capacity indices, and reduced oxidative metabolites in jejunal tissue. Correspondingly, SJE supplementation upregulated the mRNA expression of antioxidant-related genes and anti-inflammatory cytokines in the jejunum. Notably, SJE supplementation altered the gut microbiota structure and increased alpha diversity indices, including observed species, ACE, and Chao1. Specifically, SJE supplementation increased the relative abundances of Fibrobacteres, Akkermansia muciniphila, and Prevotella copri. The SJE-induced shifts in gut microbiota were signific antly correlated with early weaning-related indices. Overall, SJE supplementation alleviated intestinal oxidative stress, inflammation, and microbiota dysbiosis, which may contribute to its effects on alleviating diarrhea, intestinal oxidative stress, inflammation, and microbiota dysbiosis in early-weaned piglets.