Refinement of the novel preference paradigm for young pigs

Golden, Rebecca Kirsten

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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/124145 Copy

Description

Title

Refinement of the novel preference paradigm for young pigs

Author(s)

Golden, Rebecca Kirsten

Issue Date

2024-03-14

Director of Research (if dissertation) or Advisor (if thesis)

Dilger, Ryan N

Doctoral Committee Chair(s)

Dilger, Ryan N

Committee Member(s)

• Khan, Naiman
• Schwarb, Hillary
• Antonson, Adrienne

Department of Study

Neuroscience Program

Discipline

Neuroscience

Degree Granting Institution

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Degree Name

Ph.D.

Degree Level

Dissertation

Keyword(s)

• Behavioral neuroscience
• Cognitive development
• Biomedical model

Abstract

There are many reasons why human infants may rely on infant formula instead of breastmilk. Unfortunately, evidence has demonstrated discrepancies between formula-fed and breastfed infants, with breastfed infants outperforming their formula-fed peers in cognitive development. As such, formula companies are working to enhance their products with the goal of reducing that developmental gap. One of the main components of breastmilk is oligosaccharides, which have been shown to support intestinal, brain, and cognitive development. Infant formulas are typically formulated using bovine milk, which contains lower levels and different forms of oligosaccharides than breastmilk. As such, formula companies are funding research assessing the impact of oligosaccharide supplementation, especially in sialylated form. The pig as a biomedical model has grown more popular in recent years due to the similarities to humans, with the main similarities revolving around neuroanatomy and gastrointestinal physiology. The work in this dissertation set out to determine the impact of sialyllactose supplementation on intestinal, brain, and cognitive development. Additionally, updates were made to the main behavior test used to assess cognitive development in order to reduce data variability and increase paradigm sensitivity. We demonstrated that sialyllactose supplementation is safe and well-tolerated by the growing pig. This work also indicated minor behavioral, physiological, and anatomical differences due to supplementation. Additional work demonstrated that pigs are able to demonstrate recognition memory utilizing proper paradigm hardware and analysis techniques. The results from this work should inform future research of nutritional interventions and provide insight as to best-practices for elucidating cognitive differences in growing pigs.

Graduation Semester

2024-05

Type of Resource

Thesis

Copyright and License Information

© 2024 Rebecca Kirsten Golden

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