Effect of probiotic, prebiotic and synbiotic on faecal microbial count and cell-mediated immunity in crossbred calves

A study was conducted to evaluate the impact of probiotic, prebiotic and synbiotic as feed additives on faecal counts of coliform and E. coli along with cell mediated immune response in crossbred calves. For this purpose fifteen days old, 24 crossbred calves were divided into 4 groups of 6 calves each. The calves were assigned to different dietary treatments viz T0(control group) -basal diet, T1 (probiotic group) - basal diet + Lactobacillus acidophilus @ 1 g/calf/day (2 x 1010 cfu/ g), T2 (prebiotic group)- basal diet + Mannan oligosaccharide (MOS) @ 4 g per calf/day and T3 (synbiotic group) basal diet +Lactobacillus acidophilus @ 0.5 gm (2 x 1010 cfu/ g) + 2 g MOS per calf/day respectively for a period of 90 days. Faecal samples for coliform and E. coli count were taken at 15 days interval. Blood samples were taken at 15 days interval for lymphocyte count. Blood samples were taken at 45th and 90th-day for lymphocyte stimulation test (LST) in EDTA coated vials. Skin fold test was done on 90th day of experimental study. The results of study showed that there was a significant reduction in faecal shedding of coliform and E. coli in T1, T2 and T3 groups indicating lesser proliferation of pathogenic bacteria in the gut. The treatment groups T2 and T3 showed a significant increase in lymphocyte count whereas all the treated groups had significantly higher values of the lymphocytic index on 45th and 90th day post supplementation indicating improved cell mediated immunity. Increased skin fold thickness was observed post 48 hours of phytohaemagglutinin injection in T2 and T3 groups. It may, therefore, be concluded that supplementation of prebiotic and synbiotic is advantageous in attaining gut conditioning and enhanced immunity which may be helpful in preventing calf scours in crossbred calves.