An American government scientist has devised an alternative to antibiotics to control E. coli, the leading cause of sickness and death in young pigs.
Roger Harvey, a veterinary medical officer with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, leads an effort to develop a mixed culture of beneficial bacteria called recombined porcine continuous-flow, or RPCF.
Scientists think that RPCF might one day be able to replace today’s antibiotic treatments when combined with ambient temperature regulation, hygiene improvement and zinc oxide applications. A growing resistance of E. coli to today’s antibiotics makes it especially important to develop an effective replacement.
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Harvey’s method involves colonizing young pigs’ intestinal tracts with a mixture of beneficial bacteria obtained from other pigs. This helps establish healthy microbial populations in the gut much quicker than would otherwise occur. These good bacteria attach to intestinal walls, blocking sites so disease-causing bad bacteria can’t attach and compete for needed nutrients.
Some of the colonizing bacteria also produce bactericidal compounds that work against disease-causing pathogens, further reducing their ability to colonize the intestinal tract.
About 35,000 pigs have been tested at four nursery farms and one wean-to-finish operation in five U.S. regions. These farms had previously been diagnosed with disease caused by the F-18 strain of E. coli.
So far, the RPCF mixture of beneficial bacteria has been shown to reduce illness, death and medication costs from E. coli infections when compared to untreated pigs.
