Supplemental Escherichia coli phytase and strontium enhance bone strength of young pigs fed a phosphorus-adequate diet.

Young pigs represent an excellent model of youth to assess potentials of dietary factors for improving bone structure and function. We conducted 2 experiments to determine whether adding microbial phytase (2,000 U/kg, OptiPhos, JBS United) and Sr (50 mg/kg, SrCO3 Alfa Aesar) into a P-adequate diet further improved bone strength of young pigs. In Expt. 1, 24 gilts (8.6 +/- 0.1 kg body wt) were divided into 2 groups (n = 12), and fed a corn-soybean-meal basal diet (BD, 0.33% available P) or BD + phytase for 6 wk. In Expt. 2, 32 pigs (11.4 +/- 0.2 kg) were divided into 4 groups (n = 8), and fed BD, BD + phytase, BD + Sr, or BD + phytase and Sr for 5 wk. Both supplemental phytase and Sr enhanced (P < 0.05) breaking strengths (11-20%), mineral content (6-15%), and mineral density (6-11%) of metatarsals and femurs. Supplemental phytase also resulted in larger total bone areas (P < 0.05) and a larger cross-sectional area of femur (P = 0.06). Concentrations of Sr were elevated 4-fold (P < 0.001) in both bones by Sr, and moderately increased (P = 0.05-0.07) in metatarsal by phytase. In conclusion, supplemental phytase at 2000 U/kg of P-adequate diets enhanced bone mechanical function of weanling pigs by modulating both geometrical and chemical properties of bone. The similar benefit of supplemental Sr was mainly due to an effect on bone chemical properties.