The Swine it Podcast Show Canada - #04: Enhancing the immune response of piglets: when nutrition meets health

Environmental conditions and dietary components profoundly impact the immune system of piglets, especially at an early age. In turn, their microbiota and immune system interact to maintain gut homeostasis and functions, including nutrient absorption. In that matter, the industry has observed over the years that feeding piglets with different functional foods can improve post-weaning growth and gut health. So in this episode, we have a great talk with Dr. Martin Lessard, who has built a broad and outstanding career by researching many of those functional foods. By presenting the subject in a digested way, Dr. Lessard leads us through a journey inside the pig microbiome and the strategies we can apply to support piglets right at the beginning of their lives.

What you’ll learn:

    ○ Research on enhancing the immune system of piglets

    ○ Diet supplementation with vitamins

    ○ Defining a "normal" microbiome

    ○ Strategies for preventing low birth weight

Meet the guest:  

Dr. Martin Lessard

Experience: 

    ○ Biologist (Ph.D. program, 1984-1988) and Research Scientist for Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (1988-2020)

Background:

    ○ Ph.D., Nutrition and Veterinary Immunology (Université Laval)

    ○ M.Sc., Animal Science (Université Laval)

    ○ B.Sc., Agronomy (Université Laval)