Establishment of a special pathogen free Chinese Wuzhishan Minipigs Colony

To meet the increasing demands of specific pathogen free (SPF) minipigs in biomedical researches, 8 pregnant Chinese Wuzhishan minipigs (WZSP) sows with clear background were chosen to obtain SPF WZSP by hysterectomy. At 111 ± 2 days of the pregnancy, piglets were aseptically taken out from the sows and artificially suckled for 40 to 45 days in the positive isolators. Then, the piglets defined as F0 were transferred to barrier environment and fed with standard feeds. The original SPF colony was formed for breeding by selected piglets from F0 group of 6–8 months old. Biological characteristics of SPF WZSP were collected and further compared to those of conventional (CV) WZSP, including growth performance, reproductive performance, hematology and blood biochemistry, and major pathogens detection. As a result, 61 F0 piglets were obtained from 8 candidate sows, and 55 out of them survived. After strictly selection, 35 F0 piglets were used to form the original SPF colony, which produced 14 litters of SPF piglets defined as F1. Piglet survival rates, growth performance, and reproductive performance of SPF WZSP were similar to CV WZSP. Some hematology and blood biochemistry parameters showed significant differences between SPF and CV WZSP. Eighteen kinds of pathogens were identified to be free in F0 and F1 SPF colony by repeated pathogen detections. In conclusion, we established a satisfied SPF WZSP colony maintaining original characteristics, free of controlled diseases, and being proved to be a suitable laboratory animal.