. 2018 Jul 26;315(4):G638–G649. doi: 10.1152/ajpgi.00198.2018

Table 2.

Body weight, growth rate, and intestinal morphology of PT, NT, and FT piglets

Growth Parameters^*	PT	NT	FT	P Value
Birth weight^*, g	956 ± 43^b	1212 ± 89^a	1430 ± 96^a	<0.001
Final weight^*, g	1163 ± 51^b	1583 ± 108^a	1859 ± 132^a	<0.001
Fractional growth rate^*, g·kg⁻¹·day⁻¹	62 ± 5	67 ± 5	65 ± 4	0.9
Villus height^§, µm
Proximal jejunum
At birth^†	322 ± 18	372 ± 19	372 ± 41	0.3
Final^‡	227 ± 32^b	323 ± 27^a^,^b	464 ± 23^a	<0.001
Distal ileum
At birth^†	383 ± 41	255 ± 31	352 ± 26	0.06
Final^‡	240 ± 39^b	508 ± 42^a	503 ± 31^a	<0.001
Crypt depth, µm
Proximal jejunum
At birth^†	51 ± 3^b	70 ± 4^a	70 ± 7^a	0.03
Final^‡	69 ± 3	79 ± 4	77 ± 4	0.2
Distal ileum
At birth^†	64 ± 11	51 ± 2	53 ± 2	0.45
Final^‡	58 ± 4^b	76 ± 5^a	83 ± 5^a	<0.001
Colon
At birth^†	209 ± 21	175 ± 8	209 ± 18	0.18
Final^‡	176 ± 11	183 ± 10	210 ± 10	0.15

Values are means ± SE; n = no. of pigs. Data analyzed by one-way ANOVA and Tukey’s post hoc test, except for villus height data. FT, full term; NT, near term; PT, preterm.

Means within a row with different superscripted letter differ (P < 0.05);

n = 27 PT pigs, n = 9 NT pigs, and n = 11 FT pigs;

^†

n = 7 PT pigs, n = 5 NT pigs, and n = 5 FT pigs;

^‡

n = 19 PT pigs, n = 9 NT pigs, and n = 11 FT pigs;

^§

Villus height data analyzed by Kruskal-Wallis test and Dunn’s multiple comparison test.