THE ROLE OF GUT MICROBIOTA ON MAINTAINING HEALTH OF PIGS

Sa？etak Stable gut microbiota may influence the health and wellbeing of pigs. Results of up-to-date studies have shown a positive effect of gut microbiota on feed efficiency, improvement of morphological and physiological characteristics of gastrointestinal (GI) tract, prevention of breach of pathogenic species, as well as a positive role in immunology. However, besides beneficial bacterial species, gut microbiota of pigs can include pathogens such as Salmonella spp., Clostridia spp. and pathogenic strains of E. coli. When the balance of naturally present microbial communities is disturbed, these pathogens can cause illness of pigs, causing production losses. Antibiotics were used in the past for ensuring a stable gut microbiota, but since damaging effects of such practice were recognized, alternative methods have been considered, such as the use of probiotics and prebiotics. For this approach, it is necessary to know the composition and abundance of microbial communities in GI tract of healthy pigs, as well as to identify the most important microorganisms that have a role in the prevention of infection and maintaining the wellbeing of the host. Therefore, many studies have been focused on defining and detailed characterization of gut microbiota of healthy individuals, to study interactions between microbes as well as microbial interactions with the host. Also, different approaches have been considered to ensure a stable gut microbiota to maintain vitality and health of animals