Efficacy of OMC and MMDA against the combined effects of aflatoxins, fumonisins, and zearalenone in weaned pigs

Mycotoxins present a significant health concern within the animal feed industry, with profound implications for the pig farming sector.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of two commercial adsorbents, an organically modified clinoptilolite (OMC) and a multicomponent mycotoxin detoxifying agent (MMDA), to ameliorate the combined adverse effects of dietary aflatoxins (AFs: sum of AFB₁, AFB₂, AFG₁, and AFG₂), fumonisins (FBs), and zearalenone (ZEN) at levels of nearly 0.5, 1.0, and 1.0 mg/kg, respectively, on a cohort of cross-bred female pigs (N = 24).

Pigs were randomly allocated into six experimental groups, each consisting of four individuals, and subjected to a dietary regimen spanning 42 days:

• ⇰ Group 1: control group
• ⇰ Group 2: mycotoxins (MTX) alone (0.5 mg AFs/kg + 1.0 mg FBs/kg + 1.0 mg ZEN/kg)
• ⇰ Group 3: MTX (0.5 mg AFs/kg + 1.0 mg FBs/kg + 1.0 mg ZEN/kg) + 1.5 kg OMC/ton
• ⇰ Group 4: MTX (0.5 mg AFs/kg + 1.0 mg FBs/kg + 1.0 mg ZEN/kg) + 3.0 kg OMC/ton
• ⇰ Group 5: MTX (0.5 mg AFs/kg + 1.0 mg FBs/kg + 1.0 mg ZEN/kg) + 1.5 kg MMDA/ton
• ⇰ Group 6: MTX (0.5 mg AFs/kg + 1.0 mg FBs/kg + 1.0 mg ZEN/kg) + 3.0 kg MMDA/ton

The combined administration of AFs, FBs, and ZEN (Group 2) reduced the body-weight gain and increased the relative weight of the liver, while there was no negative influence observed on the serum biochemistry of animals.

In contrast, supplementation of OMC and MMDA (Groups 3, 4, 5, and 6):

• Ameliorated the toxic effects of these mycotoxins, which was demonstrated by the histological findings in the liver and kidneys.
• Resulted in a notable reduction in residual levels of AFs, FBs, and ZEN in the liver and kidneys.

Moreover, supplementation of OMC was able to inhibit the initiation of liver carcinogenesis without any hepatotoxic side effects.

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