Biotin studies in pigs

Eight pigs were given a semi-purified diet based on maize flour and casein containing 10 μg biotin/kg. The diet was given ad lib. with or without a supplement of 70 μg biotin/kg diet from 5 to 94 d of age. The flow of biotin in the stomach was similar to the biotin intake (13.5 and 112 μg/d) for the unsupplemented and biotin-supplemented pigs respectively. The flow of biotin through the small intestine decreased for the biotin-supplemented pigs from 39 μg/d in the first quarter of the small intestine to 7.9 μg/d in the last quarter. The flows of biotin in the caecum, large intestine and colon were similar for both the unsupplemented and biotin-supplemented pigs, with values of 17–54 μg/d, indicating the synthesis of biotin in the hind-gut.