Impact of dietary tryptophan and behavioral type on behavior, plasma cortisol, and brain metabolites of young pigs1

The behavioral reactivity in an “open-field” test and plasma Cortisol levels were studied in 72 pigs from 12 litters fed for 3 wk one of three diets with different levels of tryptophan: deficient (.14%), adequate (.23%), or excess (.32%). “Open-field” tests were performed three times: 5 d (day W + 5), 23 d (day W + 23) and 45 d (day W + 45) after weaning. The exploration time and the number of grunts provided an adequate measure of the individual emotional reactivity at day W + 5. Significant correlations were obtained between exploration time and the number of grunts at each time ( r = −.83 at day W + 5; r = −.46 at day W + 23; r = −.71 at day W + 45). The distinction between animals remained (P< .05) in terms of exploration time at both 23 and 45 d after weaning. At day W + 23, exploration time was lower in the group fed the adequate diet than in the two other groups. This effect was maintained subsequently after feeding all pigs the same adequate diet (day W + 45). In 36 pigs slaughtered at day W + 23, brain TRP concentration was higher with the excess dietary TRP than with deficient or adequate levels. Conversely, other plasma amino acids (particularly threonine) accumulated only in the brains of pigs fed the deficient diet. Plasma Cortisol level assayed at weaning (W) and 2 wk later increased with age and was higher in 16-h fasted (day W + 15) than in 3-h fasted (day W + 17) pigs. Correlations were observed within litters in the fasting state, between the Cortisol level and behavioral traits measured at day W + 23 (r = .70 for number of grunts, r = −.60 for exploration time). Dietary TRP did not affect the plasma Cortisol level irrespective of the nutritional state after weaning. However, an interaction was noted between plasma Cortisol and TRP status (P< .05). Although dietary TRP induced large variations in brain amino acids and 5-hydroxyindole concentrations, changes in behavioral and Cortisol responses were relatively minor.