Nutritional Sensing and Feed Intake in Swine
Summary
Feed intake in swine is orchestrated through a complex interplay between chemosensory detection of nutrients, gut–brain communication and hormonal regulation. Taste receptors in the oral cavity and nutrient-sensing receptors in the gastrointestinal tract detect amino acids, sugars and fatty acids, triggering the release of enteroendocrine hormones such as cholecystokinin and glucagon-like peptide-1. Circulating factors including ghrelin, leptin and insulin integrate within hypothalamic circuits to modulate appetite and energy balance. Early life exposure to specific flavours and dietary compounds programmes neural circuits underlying feed preference, stress resilience at weaning and post-weaning performance. Insights into these mechanisms inform the development of precision diets and sensory enrichment strategies that optimise growth efficiency, animal welfare and sustainability in global swine production systems.
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Nutritional Sensing and Feed Intake in Swine publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in nutritional sensing and feed intake in swine across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Entroendocrine cells: Specialized gut cells that detect luminal nutrients and secrete hormones regulating appetite and digestion.
Ghrelin: Hormone produced by the stomach that stimulates hunger via hypothalamic pathways.
Sensory-specific satiety: Decline in appetite for a food resulting from its repeated consumption, independent of energy requirements.
Sensory-motivated intake: Component of feed intake driven by palatability and sensory stimuli rather than by post-absorptive metabolic demands.
References
- Sucrose Inclusion in Gestating and Lactating Diets of Sows Modifies the Feeding Behavior of Post-Weaning Pigs for Sweet Solutions. Veterinary Sciences (2022).
- Effects of providing sensory attractants to suckling pigs during lactation and after weaning on post-weaning growth performance. Translational Animal Science (2022).
- Effects of flavour variety on the intake and palatability of commercial feed in nursery pigs. Frontiers in Veterinary Science (2023).
- Perinatal Flavour Learning and Adaptation to Being Weaned: All the Pig Needs Is Smell. PLOS ONE (2011).
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