INVESTIGATION INTO THE EFFECT OF TOXINS P RODUCED BY FUSARIUM-MONILIFORME IN PIGS - II - EXAMINATION OF PERINATAL TOXICOSIS IN PREGNANT SOWS AND NEWBORN PIGLETS - PRELIMINARY PUBLICATION

Three pregnant sows were fed a diet mixed with Fusarium moniliforme fu ngal culture from the 107th day of pregnancy. Two of the sows were giv en 300 mg fumonisine B-1 toxin daily for a further 7 days after partur ition, i.e. 14-16 days in total, while the third sow was given this do sage only until parturition, i.e. for a period of 7 days. Directly fol lowing parturition and before the first suckling two piglets from each sow were slaughtered. Subsequently after 24 hours two mole piglets wh ich had had access to colostrum were taken from each sow, slaughtered and processed, followed by two more per sow on the 7th day after partu rition. The results obtained appear to corroborate that fumonisine B-1 toxin present in a F.moniliforme culture fed to sows in the advanced stages of pregnancy can harm foetuses while still in the uterus. Of th e disorders characteristically caused by this toxin. pulmonary oedema of particular severity Ras observed in the piglets slaughtered immedia tely after parturition, before suckling could rake place. These disord ers could still be observed in piglets slaughtered 24 hours after part urition and on the 7th day (Table). The intrapulmonary process was ide ntical in nature: in addition to the clinical signs of mild or a great er degree of subpleural and interlobular pulmonary oedema (Figure), a slight extent of intraalveolar pulmonary oedema was also observed, lim ited to a smaller. group of tile alveoli. The greater area of the alve oli aas free of this. The subpleural, interlobular and peribronchial-p eribronchiolar lymphatic vessels were highly dilated, being filled wit h lymph. No change indicating pulmonary oedema was observed in the lun gs of tile piglets of the third sow, slaughtered on the 7th day. The c oncentration of sphinganine and sphingosine in the liver and the cereb rum is to be determined in further experiments currently in progress. Changes occulting in the biochemical parameters of the plasma and in t he sphinganine/sphingosine ratio of the serum from blood samples taken by bleeding at the time of slaughter are to be examined. The fumonisi n concentration of colostrum milked from the sows on the first day and that of milk samples taken on the 2nd and the 4th day is to be measur ed.