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The stress response of pig herds poses a significant challenge in the pig breeding industry, and investigating strategies to mitigate this stress is of paramount importance. The objective of this study was to investigate the impacts of supplemental feeding of Chinese herbal mixtures to perinatal sows on antioxidant capacity and gut microbiota of sows and their offspring piglets. A total of 60 healthy sows (Large white) at fourth parity were randomly assigned to five treatment groups. The control group received a basal diet, while the TRT1 group received a basal diet supplemented with 2kg/t Bazhen powder (BZP). The TRT2, TRT3, and TRT4 groups were fed a basal diet supplemented with 1kg/t, 2kg/t, and 3kg/t Qi-Zhu- Gui-Shao soothing liver and replenishing blood powder (QZGSP), respectively. The trial lasted for 5weeks, starting from day 100 of gestation until day 21 of delivery. The results demonstrated that the inclusion of 2kg/t and 3kg/t QZGSP significantly enhanced the antioxidant capacity of sows and their offspring piglets to different degrees, thereby effectively alleviating oxidative stress. Analysis of gut microbiota revealed that QZGSP influenced the composition of gut microbiota in both sows and their offspring piglets. Specifically, at the genus level, the abundance of Christensenellaceae&#95;R-7&#95;group in the gut microbiota of sows in the TRT4 group was significantly lower than that in the TRT1 group ( p < 0.05), while the relative abundance of Lactobacillus in the gut microbiota of sows in the TRT4 group was significantly higher than that in the CON group ( p < 0.05). Furthermore, at the genus level, compared to those in the TRT1 group, piglets from the TRT4 group exhibited a significant decrease in relative abundance of Escherichia-Shigella , Parabacteroides, and Methanobrevivacter ( p < 0.05), but a significant increase in Phascolarctobacterium ( p < 0.05). Spearman correlation analysis indicated a positive correlation between relative abundance of Christensenellaceae&#95;R-7&#95;group and serum contents of T-AOC and CAT ( p < 0.05), as well as a negative correlation with serum concentration MDA ( p < 0.05). Additionally, there was a positive correlation between relative abundance Lactobacillus and serum levels SOD ( p < 0.01) and GSH-Px ( p < 0.05). Therefore, supplementation of 3kg/t QZGSP in the periparturient sow diet significantly augmented antioxidant capacity in both sows and offspring piglets, while concurrently modulating the composition and structure of their intestinal microflora. The findings from this study demonstrate that QZGSP represents a beneficial feed additive for perinatal sows., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Duan, Wang, Li, Liu, Bao, Shi and Zhao.)

The present study was designed to evaluate the effect of a mixture of Chinese medicinal residues (CMRs) consisting of Salvia miltiorrhiza residues (SMR) and Isatidis Radix residues (IRR) on productive performance, egg quality, serum lipid and hormone levels, liver and blood antioxidant capacity, oviduct inflammation levels, and gut microbiota in the late-laying stage. A total of 288 fifty-four-week-old BaShang long-tailed hens were divided into four groups. The feed trial period was 8 weeks. The control group was fed the basic diet as a CCMR group, supplemented with 3, 4, and 6% for the experimental groups LCMR, MCMR, and HCMR. The egg production rate of the MCMR group was 8.1% higher than that of the CCMR group ( p  < 0.05). Serum triglyceride (TG) levels of hens of the CMR-supplemented group were significantly decreased than those of the CCMR group ( p  < 0.05). The group supplemented with different levels of CMR had significantly higher serum HDL-C levels compared with the control group ( p  < 0.05). Follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH) levels were remarkably increased for the LCMR and MCMR groups and significantly decreased for the HCMR group compared to CCMR ( p  < 0.05). Serum and liver glutathione peroxidase (GSH-PX) activities were significantly increased, and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels were significantly decreased in the MCMR group compared to the CCMR group ( p  < 0.05). The expression levels of tubal inflammatory factor markers (IL-4, IL-1β, TNF-α) in the MCMR and HCMR groups were consistent with the pathological findings of the sections. As for cecal microbiota, supplementation with CMR affected the alpha diversity of the cecum microbiome at the genus level. The Shannon index was significantly higher in the MCMR group than in the CCMR and HCMR groups ( p  < 0.05). Supplementation with different levels of CMR mainly regulated the ratio of intestinal Firmicutes to Bacteroidetes and the abundance of phyla such as Proteobacteria . In addition, CMR supplementation at different levels in the diet enriched lipid-metabolizing bacteria, such as Bacteroides and Ruminococcus&#95;gnavus&#95;group . Furthermore, according to linear discriminant analysis (LDA) effect size (LEfSe) analysis, the MCMR group showed an increase in the number of short-chain fatty acid-producing bacteria Romboutsia and fiber-degrading specialized bacteria Monoglobus . Therefore, supplementation of appropriate amounts of CMR to the diet of laying hens enhanced reproductive hormone levels, hepatic antioxidant capacity, and lipid metabolism, alleviated the levels of oviductal inflammatory factors, and modulated the abundance structure of bacterial flora to improve the late-laying performance and egg quality. The results of the current study showed that CMR is a beneficial feed supplement for chickens when added in moderation., Competing Interests: JY was employed by Animal Husbandry Technology Promotion Institution of Zhangjiakou. The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Li, Ma, Gong, Shi, Meng, Yan, Zhao and Li.)