Actigen®

Description

Actigen® is a prebiotic derived from the Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain. Overall, prebiotics can be defined as a non-digestible food ingredient that beneficially affects the gut health by selectively stimulating the growth and activity of specific gut bacteria, and thus improving gut health and overall well-being. The development of prebiotic compounds has been primarily aimed at non-digestible oligosaccharides like fructooligosaccharides (FOS) or inulin, galactooligosaccharides (GOS), or mannanoligosaccharides (MOS), for example.

Properties

When Actigen® is included in the diet, they serve as alternate attachment sites for gram-negative bacteria present in the gut. Thus, Actigen® can stabilize good caecal bacteria and blocks colonization of pathogenic bacteria (E. Coli, salmonella) to maintain a healthy gastro-intestinal tract. Good intestinal micro-organisms are essential for synthesis of B and K vitamins. Furthermore, the inclusion of Actigen® to the daily diet of horses has been shown to affect humoral immunity by enhancing plasma and colostral IgG and bile IgA antibody levels. So, Actigen® supports the immune system and improves milk and colostrum quality, primarily immunoglobulin levels, with a positive impact on foal health. Consequently, it can reduce antibiotic use.

Possible uses

Complementary feed containing added Actigen® are of benefit for every type of horse, since they all need good symbiotic micro-organisms in their intestines for their overall well-being. In particular, breeding mares to enhance colostrum quality and antibody transfer to foals, weaning foals to protect intestinal integrity and every horse with gastro-intestinal disorders can benefit the most from Actigen®. It can also help competition horses and stressed horses to regulate their intestinal function.