The effect of increasing concentrations of Fusarium toxins in piglet diets on histological parameters of the uterus and vagina

Abstract

The effects of feeding diets containing 0.01, 0.06, 0.15, 0.22 and 0.42 mg zearalenone and 0.2, 0.8, 1.0, 1.9 and 3.9 mg deoxynivalenol per kg, originating from Fusarium toxin contaminated maize, on the uterus of 50 prepubertal piglets (10 pigs per treatment; BW 32.6 ± 5.4 kg; approximately 70 days of age) were investigated. The mean weight of the uteri of animals receiving the most highly contaminated diet was significantly increased at the time of slaughtering. The histological investigation showed no marked differences between the feeding groups. Histometrical parameters of the surface epithelium of the uterus, of the uterine glands and the vaginal epithelium were not altered by the treatment.

Keywords:

• Fusarium
• Mycotoxin
• Zearalenone
• Uterus
• Piglets
• Histology

Acknowledgement

The assistance of Prof. Dr. H.-A. Schoon and the co-workers of the Institute of Pathology of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine of the University of Leipzig, Germany, is gratefully acknowledged.