Composition, diversity, and origin of the bacterial community in grass carp intestine

Gut microbiota has become an integral component of the host, and received increasing attention. However, for many domestic animals, information on the microbiota is insufficient and more effort should be exerted to manage the gastrointestinal bacterial community. Understanding the factors that influence the composition of microbial community in the host alimentary canal is essential to manage or improve the microbial community composition. In the present study, 16S rRNA gene sequence-based comparisons of the bacterial communities in the grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idellus) intestinal contents and fish culture-associated environments are performed. The results show that the fish intestinal microbiota harbors many cellulose-decomposing bacteria, including sequences related to Anoxybacillus, Leuconostoc, Clostridium, Actinomyces, and Citrobacter. The most abundant bacterial operational taxonomic units (OTUs) in the grass carp intestinal content are those related to feed digestion. In addition, the potential pathogens and probiotics are important members of the intestinal microbiota. Further analyses show that grass carp intestine holds a core microbiota composed of Proteobacteria, Firmicutes, and Actinobacteria. The comparison analyses reveal that the bacterial community in the intestinal contents is most similar to those from the culture water and sediment. However, feed also plays significant influence on the composition of gut microbiota.     

草鱼肠道纤维素降解细菌的分离与鉴定

为更好地弄清草鱼（Ctenopharyngodon idella）肠道纤维素降解细菌的种类,采用羧甲基纤维素（CMC）作为唯一碳源的选择性培养基,分别从草鱼肠道内容物和肠道黏膜中分离到了40株产纤维素酶细菌。16S rRNA基因序列的分析结果显示,大多数产纤维素酶细菌为气单胞菌属（Aeromonas）的种类,其次为肠杆菌属（Enterobacter）的细菌以及未经分离纯培养的细菌（Uncultured bacterium）。进一步研究细菌产纤维素酶能力发现,纤维素酶活性显著性高于其他菌株的分别是A. veronii MC2、A. veronii BC6、肠杆菌科（Enterobacteriaceae）中一种未经分离纯培养的细菌BM3（Uncultured bacterium BM3）和A. jandaei HC9。草鱼肠道中简答气单胞菌（A. jandaei）、类志贺邻单胞菌（Plesiomonas shigelloides）、阴沟肠杆菌（E. cloacae）以及产气肠杆菌（E. aerogenes）是被作为产纤维素酶细菌的首次报道。       

饲料中添加苜蓿草粉对草鱼生长、肌肉品质和血清抗氧化指标的影响

为研究苜蓿(Medicago sativa L.)草粉对草鱼(Ctenopharyngodon idella)生长性能、肌肉品质和血清抗氧化指标的影响, 在基础饲料(粗蛋白: 32.0%, 粗脂肪: 4.12%)中分别添加0(对照组)、5%、10%、15%和20%的苜蓿草粉, 饲喂初始体重为(50.04±0.04) g的草鱼, 每个处理3个重复, 进行为期61d的养殖实验。结果表明: (1)与对照组相比, 20%苜蓿组的特定生长率显著降低(P<0.05), 15%苜蓿组的饲料系数和摄食率显著升高(P<0.05)。除5%苜蓿组外, 其余苜蓿添加组草鱼的肥满度显著降低(P<0.05); (2)饲料中添加苜蓿草粉显著降低草鱼肌肉中硫代巴比妥酸值和乳酸含量(P<0.05)。10%和15%苜蓿组草鱼肌肉羟脯氨酸含量显著高于对照组(P<0.05)。此外, 在添加苜蓿草粉后, 草鱼肌肉失水率显著升高(P<0.05)。除20%苜蓿组外, 其余苜蓿添加组草鱼肌肉黏附性显著升高(P<0.05), 草鱼肌肉硬度在10%苜蓿组显著高于对照组(P<0.05); (3)20%苜蓿组草鱼血清过氧化氢酶(CAT)活力显著高于对照组(P<0.05)。与对照组相比, 15%、20%苜蓿组草鱼血清谷胱甘肽过氧化物酶(GSH-PX)活力显著升高, 丙二醛(MDA)含量显著降低(P<0.05)。综上所述, 当苜蓿草粉的添加量不超过15%时, 对草鱼生长性能没有显著性影响, 且能改善草鱼肌肉品质, 提高血清抗氧化能力。因此, 草鱼饲料中苜蓿草粉的添加量不应超过15%。     

喂养不同饵料对匙吻鲟和鳙消化道微生物区系的影响

为了解消化道的菌群结构及影响因素, 用PCR-DGGE技术和序列分析调查投喂鲜活饵料(BI-L)和配合饲料(BI-C)的鳙肠道菌群, 和投喂鲜活饵料(PS-L, PI-L)和配合饲料(PS-C, PI-C)的匙吻鲟胃和肠道菌群。实验共回收测序16条DGGE条带, 系统发育分析显示鳙和匙吻鲟所有待测样本的优势菌为厚壁菌门(31.25%, 5条)。其他属于-变形菌纲(-Proteobacteria)(25%, 4条)、拟杆菌门(Bacteroidetes)(12.5%, 2条)、梭杆菌门(Fusobacteria)(12.5%, 2条)、蓝藻门(Cyanobacteria)(6.25%, 1条)、放线菌门(Actinobacteria)(6.25%, 1条)、-变形菌门(-Proteobacteria)(6.25%, 1条)。不同饵料喂养的匙吻鲟肠道菌群具有较高的相似性(49%), 不同饵料喂养的鳙肠道菌群也具有较高的相似性(59%), 说明这些生态位中存在着更稳定成型的微生物群落。然而, 两组不同饵料喂养的匙吻鲟胃样本菌群之间存在相当大的差异, 表明匙吻鲟胃部菌群可能更易受到饵料的影响。     

饲料蛋白质和小麦淀粉水平对中大规格草鱼生长性能及肝脏组织结构的影响

草鱼(Ctenopharyngodon idella)对碳水化合物的利用能力显著优于脂肪, 因此研究碳水化合物与蛋白的相互作用关系是解决草鱼配方策略的重要途径。实验探讨了中规格(460 g)草鱼和大规格(1970 g)草鱼饲料中蛋白与碳水化合物的相互作用关系。实验采用2×4的双因子实验设计, 实验一: 中规格草鱼饲料的2个淀粉梯度为25%和35%, 4个蛋白梯度为22%、24%、26%和28%, 共8个处理; 实验二: 大规格草鱼饲料的2个淀粉梯度为30%和40%, 4个蛋白梯度为18%、20%、22%和24%, 共8个处理。在56d的等量投喂后, 实验结果显示: 中规格草鱼的生长性能随着饲料蛋白水平的升高显著上升, 在28%蛋白水平组达到最高(P<0.05), 且小麦淀粉水平35%组的生长性能显著高于25%组(P<0.05); 大规格草鱼的生长性能也随着饲料蛋白水平的升高显著上升, 在蛋白水平大于20%之后差异不显著(P>0.05), 且小麦淀粉水平40%组的生长性能显著高于30%组(P<0.05)。同时, 中规格和大规格草鱼饲料分别添加35%和40%小麦淀粉时不会对草鱼的肝脏组织造成明显的负面影响。由此可见, 在实验条件下, 中规格和大规格草鱼分别在饲料小麦淀粉水平35%和40%以内时, 可以有效地利用淀粉节约饲料蛋白而不造成肝脏组织损伤。     

Characteristics of gut microbiota in pigs with different breeds,growth periods and genders

Gut microbiota plays important roles in host nutrition, metabolism and immunity, and is affected by multiple factors. However, the understandings of the gut microbiota in pigs within different breeds, growth periods and genders from a large cohort remain largely undefined. In the present study, the characteristics of the gut microbiota in 120 pigs of different breeds, growth periods and genders were investigated using the Illumina MiSeq PE300 combined with QIIME2 platform. A total of 7 388 636 raw reads and 16 411 features were obtained. Additionally, the microbial diversity, compositions and phenotypes were described. 66.53% microbiota belonged to the top 10 most abundant genera (pan gut bacteria), and 28 species were commonly identified (core gut bacteria, commonality ≥ 75%) among the pigs. Besides, the correlations within pan and core gut microbiota were firstly investigated. The metagenomic function was predicted by using PICRUSt2. Furthermore, the explanatory effects of the influencing factors suggested that growth period was the greatest contributor to the gut microbiota in pigs. These results expanded our knowledge of mammalian gut microbiota within different influencing factors and microbial-related biological features in swine, which contributes to improving animal production and assisting animal model research.     

Intestinal microbiota of gibel carp (Carassius auratus gibelio) and its origin as revealed by 454 pyrosequencing

The intestinal microbiota has received increasing attention, as it influences growth, feed conversion, epithelial development, immunity as well as the intrusion of pathogenic microorganisms in the intestinal tract. In this study, pyrosequencing was used to explore the bacterial community of the intestine in gibel carp (Carassius auratus gibelio), and the origin of these microorganisms. The results disclosed great bacterial diversities in the carp intestines and cultured environments. The gibel carp harbored characteristic intestinal microbiota, where Proteobacteria were predominant, followed by Firmicutes. The analysis on the 10 most abundant bacterial operational taxonomic units (OTUs) revealed a majority of Firmicutes in the intestinal content (by decreasing order: Veilonella sp., Lachnospiraceae, Lactobacillales, Streptococcus sp., and Lactobacillus sp.). The second most abundant OTU was Rothia sp. (Actinobacteria). The most likely potential probiotics (Lactobacillus sp., and Bacillus sp.) and opportunists (Aeromonas sp., and Acinetobacter sp.) were not much abundant. Bacterial community comparisons showed that the intestinal community was closely related to that of the sediment, indicating the importance of sediment as source of gut bacteria in gibel carp. However, 37.95 % of the OTUs detected in feed were retrieved in the intestine, suggesting that food may influence markedly the microbiota of gibel carp, and therefore may be exploited for oral administration of probiotics.     

Altered gut microbiota associated with intestinal disease in grass carp (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Ctenopharyngodon idellus</Emphasis>)

Gut microbiota plays a crucial importance in their host. Disturbance of the microbial structure and function is known to be associated with inflammatory intestinal disorders. Enteritis is a significant cause of high mortality in fish species, including grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idellus). Study regarding the association between microbial alternations and enteritis in grass carp is still absent. In this study, changes in the gut microbiota of grass carp suffering from enteritis were investigated using NGS-based 16S rRNA sequencing. Six healthy and ten abnormal fish (showing reddening anus, red odiferous fluid accumulating in the abdominal capacity, and flatulence and haemorrhage in the intestine) were collected from a fish farm in Huanggang Fisheries Institute (Hubei, China). Our results revealed that the diversity, structure, and function of gut microbiota were significantly different between diseased and healthy fish (P?<?0.05). Particularly, members of the genera Dechloromonas, Methylocaldum, Planctomyces, Rhodobacter, Caulobacter, Flavobacterium, and Pseudomonas were significantly increased in diseased fish compared with that in healthy fish (P?<?0.05). Predicted function indicated that microbiota significantly changed the specific metabolic pathways (related to amino acid metabolism, xenobiotics biodegradation and metabolism, and carbohydrate metabolism) in diseased fish (P?<?0.05). Taken together, our findings point out the association between changes of the gut microbiota and enteritis in grass carp, which provide basic information useful for diagnoses, prevention, and treatment of intestinal diseases occurring in cultured fish.     

Structural conservation and food habit-related liver expression of uncoupling protein 2 gene in five major Chinese carps

The full-length cDNA of grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idellus) and silver carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix) uncoupling protein 2 (UCP2) was obtained from liver. The grass carp UCP2 cDNA was determined to be 1152 bp in length with an open reading frame that encodes 310 amino acids. Five introns (Intron 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7) in the translated region, and partial sequence of Intron 2 in the untranslated region of grass carp UCP2 gene were also obtained. Gene structure comparison between grass carp and mammalian (human and mouse) UCP2 gene shows that, the UCP2 gene structure of grass carp is much similar to that of human and mouse. Partial UCP2 cDNA sequences of bighead carp (Aristichthys nobilis) and mud carp (Cirrhinus molitorella), were further determined. Together with the common carp (Cyprinus carpio) UCP2 sequence from GenBank (AJ243486), multiple alignment result shows that the nucleotide and amino acid sequences of the UCP2 gene, were highly conserved among the five major Chinese carps that belong to four subfamilies. Using beta-actin as control, the ratio UCP2/beta-actin mRNA (%) was determined to be 149.4 +/- 15.6 (common carp), 127.4 +/- 22.1(mud carp), 96.7 +/- 12.7 (silver carp), 94.1 +/- 26.8 (bighead carp) and 63.7 +/- 16.2 (grass carp). The relative liver UCP2 expression of the five major Chinese carps, shows a close relationship with their food habit: benthos and detritus-eating fish (common carp and mud carp) > planktivorious fish (silver carp and bighead carp) > herbivorous fish (grass carp). We suggest that liver UCP2 might be important for Chinese carps to detoxify cyanotoxins and bacteria in debris and plankton food.     

Comparative study on the gut microbiotas of four economically important Asian carp species

Gut microbiota of four economically important Asian carp species(silver carp, Hypophthalmichthys molitrix; bighead carp,Hypophthalmichthys nobilis; grass carp, Ctenopharyngodon idella; common carp, Cyprinus carpio) were compared using 16 S rRNA gene pyrosequencing. Analysis of more than 590,000 quality-filtered sequences obtained from the foregut, midgut and hindgut of these four carp species revealed high microbial diversity among the samples. The foregut samples of grass carp exhibited more than 1,600 operational taxonomy units(OTUs) and the highest alpha-diversity index, followed by the silver carp foregut and midgut. Proteobacteria, Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes and Fusobacteria were the predominant phyla regardless of fish species or gut type. Pairwise(weighted) UniFrac distance-based permutational multivariate analysis of variance with fish species as a factor produced significant association(P0.01). The gut microbiotas of all four carp species harbored saccharolytic or proteolytic microbes, likely in response to the differences in their feeding habits. In addition, extensive variations were also observed even within the same fish species. Our results indicate that the gut microbiotas of Asian carp depend on the exact species, even when the different species were cohabiting in the same environment. This study provides some new insights into developing commercial fish feeds and improving existing aquaculture strategies.     

Gut milieu shapes the bacterial communities of invasive silver carp

Silver carp is an invasive fish present in the Gobindsagar reservoir, India and has a profound impact on aquaculture. Understanding taxonomic diversity and functional attributes of gut microbiota will provide insights into the important role of bacteria in metabolism of silver carp that facilitated invasion of this exotic species. Microbial composition in foregut, midgut, hindgut and water samples was analysed using 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing. The bacterial communities of water samples were distinct from gut microbiota, and unique microbial assemblages were present in different regions of gut depicting profound impact of gut environment on microflora. Proteobacteria was the most abundant phyla across all samples. Ecological network analysis showed dominance of competitive interactions within posteriors region of the gut, promoting niche specialization. Predictive functional profiling revealed the microbiota specialized in digestive functions in different regions of the gut, which also reflects the dietary profile of silver carp.     

High through put 16S rRNA gene-based pyrosequencing analysis of the fecal microbiota of high FCR and low FCR broiler growers

The performance of birds appears to vary among the flock of growing broilers which may in part be due to variation in their gut microbiota. In the view of poultry industry, it is desirable to minimise such variation. We investigated metagenomic profile of fecal bacteria in birds with high and low feed conversion ratio (FCR) to identify microbial community linked to low and high FCR by employing high throughput pyrosequencing of 16S rRNA genomic targets. Therefore feeding trial was investigated in order to identify fecal bacteria consistently linked with better feed conversion ratio in bird performance as measured by body weight gain. High-throughput 16S rRNA gene based pyrosequencing was used to provide a comparative analysis of fecal microbial diversity. The fecal microbial community of birds was predominated by Proteobacteria (48.04?% in high FCR and 49.98?% in low FCR), Firmicutes (26.17?% in high FCR and 36.23?% in low FCR), Bacteroidetes (18.62?% in high FCR and 11.66?% in low FCR), as well as unclassified bacteria (15.77?% in high FCR and 14.29?% in low FCR), suggesting that a large portion of fecal microbiota is novel and could be involved in currently unknown functions. The most prevalent bacterial classes in high FCR and low FCR were Gammaproteobacteria, Clostridia and Bacteroidia. However in low FCR birds Phascolarctobacterium, Faecalibacterium and Clostridium predominated among the Clostridia. In FCR comparison of fecal bacteria, about 36 genera were differentially abundant between high and low FCR birds. This information could be used to formulate effective strategies to improve feed efficiency and feed formulation for optimal gut health.     

Effect of garlic powder on the growth of commensal bacteria from the gastrointestinal tract

Garlic (Allium sativum) is considered one of the best disease-preventive foods. We evaluated in vitro the effect of a commercial garlic powder (GP), at concentrations of 0.1% and 1% (w/v), upon the viability of representative gut bacteria. In pure culture studies, Lactobacillus casei DSMZ 20011 was essentially found to be resistant to GP whereas a rapid killing effect of between 1 and 3 log CFU/ml reduction in cell numbers was observed with Bacteroides ovatus, Bifidobacterium longum DSMZ 20090 and Clostridium nexile A2-232. After 6h incubation, bacterial numbers increased steadily and once the strains became resistant they retained their resistant phenotype upon sub-culturing. A colonic model was also used to evaluate the effect of GP on a mixed bacterial population representing the microbiota of the distal colon. Lactic acid bacteria were found to be more resistant to GP compared to the clostridial members of the gut microbiota. While for most bacteria the antimicrobial effect was transient, the lactobacilli showed a degree of resistance to garlic, indicating that its consumption may favour the growth of these beneficial bacterial species in the gut. Garlic intake has the potential to temporarily modulate the gut microbiota.     

棉籽浓缩蛋白替代饲料中豆粕对草鱼生长性能、健康状况及肌肉品质的影响

研究旨在探讨以棉籽浓缩蛋白(Cottonseed protein concentrate, CPC)替代饲料中豆粕对草鱼(Ctenopharyngodon idella)生长性能、健康状况及肌肉品质的影响。设计了6种等氮(29%)等脂(5%)饲料,分别用棉籽浓缩蛋白替代草鱼饲料中0 (C0)、15%(C15)、30%(C30)、45%(C45)、75%(C75)和100%(C100)的豆粕,饲喂养殖于池塘网箱中平均体重为(502.46±0.40) g的草鱼(Ctenopharyngodon Idella)90d。结果显示:(1)在生长性能方面,草鱼的特定生长率和饲料系数在各组之间均无显著性差异(P>0.05)。与C0组相比, C45组草鱼的脏体比显著升高(P<0.05)。(2)在健康状况方面, C100组血清白球比显著低于C0组(P<0.05), C15组血清超氧化物歧化酶(SOD)活性显著高于C0组(P<0.05);各组草鱼肝脏、肌肉组织未发生病变。(3)在肌肉品质方面,与C0组相比, C75组草鱼肌肉粗蛋白含量和C30组异亮氨酸含量显著升高(P<0.0...     

肠道菌群对代谢相关性脂肪肝的影响及运动干预研究进展

大量研究表明,肠道菌群与神经退行性疾病和代谢性疾病等多种疾病的发生和发展息息相关,菌群的种类和数量会受到遗传、饮食习惯、运动等因素的影响。在代谢相关脂肪性肝病中,肠道菌群的部分代谢物通过增加肝脏脂肪变性、改变肠道黏膜通透性等方式对疾病的发展起到促进作用,菌群的种类和数量变化与病情进展的关系也被广泛研究,但是两者发生的先后顺序仍不十分明确。运动可以增加肠道有益菌群的种类和数量,同时改善高脂饮食导致的肠道菌群紊乱,并有效缓解代谢相关脂肪性肝病的病情,肠道菌群也能对机体的运动能力产生影响,但运动是如何通过肠道菌群来改善代谢相关脂肪性肝病的机制尚不十分明确。本文通过综述三者的相互关系来阐述肠道菌群和运动在代谢相关脂肪性肝病中发挥的重要作用。     

Response of gut microbiota to feed-borne bacteria depends on fish growth rate: a snapshot survey of farmed juvenile Takifugu obscurus

Environmental bacteria have a great impact on fish gut microbiota, yet little is known as to where fish acquire their gut symbionts, and how gut microbiota response to the disturbance from environmental bacteria. Through the integrative analysis by community profiling and source tracking, we show that feed-associated bacteria can impose a strong disturbance upon the hindgut microbiota of cultured fugu. Consequently, marked alterations in the composition and function of gut microbiota in slow growth fugu were observed, implying a reduced stability upon bacterial disturbance from feed. Moreover, quantitative ecological analyses indicated that homogeneous selection and dispersal limitation largely contribute to the community stability and partial variations among hosts in the context of lower degree of disturbance. While the disturbance peaked, variable selection leads to an augmented interaction within gut microbiota, entailing community unstability and shift. Our findings emphasized the intricate linkage between feed and gut microbiota and highlighted the importance of resolving the feed source signal before the conclusion of comparative analysis of microbiota can be drawn. Our results provide a deeper insight into aquaculture of fugu and other economically important fishes and have further implications for an improved understanding of host–microbe interactions in the vertebrate gastrointestinal tract.     

七氟菊酯和溴氰菊酯对棉铃虫肠道菌群的影响

【目的】本研究旨在探究拟除虫菊酯类杀虫剂对棉铃虫Helicoverpa armigera幼虫肠道菌群结构及代谢的影响,丰富对杀虫剂作用机理的认识。【方法】分别对棉铃虫2和3龄幼虫饲喂普通人工饲料(对照组, SS)、含2%七氟菊酯(Ⅰ型拟除虫菊酯)粉剂饲料(七氟菊酯处理组,Te)和含2.5%溴氰菊酯(Ⅱ型拟除虫菊酯)乳油饲料(溴氰菊酯处理组, DM),然后提取3龄幼虫肠道菌群基因组DNA;利用Illumina MiSeq二代高通量测序技术对肠道细菌的16S rDNA的V3-V4变异区进行测序,分析其肠道细菌的多样性和丰富度;利用qPCR验证16S rDNA测序分析结果。取2和3龄幼虫肠道,匀浆后进行Biolog-Eco实验,分析肠道细菌对Eco板上31种碳源的代谢情况。【结果】16S rDNA测序结果表明,棉铃虫3龄幼虫肠道细菌主要是厚壁菌门(Firmicutes)、变形菌门(Proteobacteria)、拟杆菌门(Bacteroidetes)和蓝藻菌门(Cyanobacteria)。与对照组相比,溴氰菊酯处理组和七氟菊酯处理组的棉铃虫幼虫肠道细菌的α多样性指数没有显著性改变,但是菌群结构发生了变化：在门水平,拟杆菌门的相对丰度减少,厚壁菌门和蓝藻菌门的相对丰度增加,qPCR验证结果亦支持16S rDNA测序分析的这个结果;在属水平,拟杆菌属Bacteroides、普氏菌属Prevotella和假单胞菌属Pseudomonas等的相对丰度降低,狭义梭菌属Clostridium sensu stricto 1、埃希菌属-志贺氏菌属Escherichia-Shigella和盐单胞菌属Halomonas等的相对丰度增加,其中盐单胞菌属Halomonas的相对丰度显著增加。Biolog-Eco结果表明,与对照组相比,溴氰菊酯处理组中2龄幼虫对羧酸类碳源的代谢能力下降;溴氰菊酯处理组和七氟菊酯处理组中3龄幼虫对DL-α-磷酸甘油、肝糖和L-苯丙氨酸等碳源的利用能力下降。【结论】结果显示,拟除虫菊酯类杀虫剂对棉铃虫肠道菌群的结构和代谢能力有明显影响,拟除虫菊酯类杀虫剂使棉铃虫肠道有益菌的相对丰度下降,而使致病菌的相对丰度增加。短时间拟除虫菊酯处理未造成抗药性菌群的丰度增加。qPCR检测结果与16S rDNA测序分析结果相似。Ⅰ型和Ⅱ型拟除虫菊酯类杀虫剂对棉铃虫肠道菌群结构和代谢功能的影响不同。     

A Feeding Induced Switch from a Variable to a Homogenous State of the Earthworm Gut Microbiota within a Host Population

Background

The distribution pattern of the earthworm gut microbiota at the host population level is of fundamental importance to understand host-microbiota interactions. Our current understanding of these interactions is very limited. Since feeding represents a main perturbation of the gut microbiota, we determined the effect of a single dose of feed on the microbiota associated with an earthworm population in a simulated microenvironment.

Methodology

Earthworms were sampled 0, 1 and 7 days after feeding. We determined the overall composition of the earthworm-associated microbiota by 16S rRNA gene cloning and sequencing. Based on the 16S rRNA gene data we constructed quantitative PCR''s (Q-PCR) for the seven most dominating bacterial groups.

Principal Findings

Q-PCR revealed low density and highly variable microbiota among the earthworms before feeding, while a high-density homologous microbiota resulted from feeding. We found that the microbiota 1 day after feeding was more equal to the microbiota after 7 days than before feeding. Furthermore, we found that the gut microbiota was very distinct from that of the bedding and the feed.

Significance

The homogenous population response represents fundamental new knowledge about earthworm gut associated bacteria.     

Gut microbiota in reintroduction of giant panda

Reintroduction is a key approach in the conservation of endangered species. In recent decades, many reintroduction projects have been conducted for conservation purposes, but the rate of success has been low. Given the important role of gut microbiota in health and diseases, we questioned whether gut microbiota would play a crucial role in giant panda's wild‐training process. The wild procedure is when captive‐born babies live with their mothers in a wilderness enclosure and learn wilderness survival skills from their mothers. During the wild‐training process, the baby pandas undergo wilderness survival tests and regular physical examinations. Based on their performance through these tests, the top subjects (age 2–3 years old) are released into the wild while the others are translocated to captivity. After release, we tracked one released panda (Zhangxiang) and collected its fecal samples for 5 months (January 16, 2013 to March 29 2014). Here, we analyzed the Illumina HiSeq sequencing data (V4 region of 16S rRNA gene) from captive pandas (n = 24), wild‐training baby pandas (n = 8) of which 6 were released and 2 were unreleased, wild‐training mother pandas (n = 8), one released panda (Zhangxiang), and wild giant pandas (n = 18). Our results showed that the gut microbiota of wild‐training pandas is significantly different from that of wild pandas but similar to that of captive ones. The gut microbiota of the released panda Zhangxiang gradually changed to become similar to those of wild pandas after release. In addition, we identified several bacteria that were enriched in the released baby pandas before release, compared with the unreleased baby pandas. These bacteria include several known gut‐health related beneficial taxa such as Roseburia, Coprococcus, Sutterella, Dorea, and Ruminococcus. Therefore, our results suggest that certain members of the gut microbiota may be important in panda reintroduction.     

益生菌调控幼龄畜禽消化道微生物研究进展

益生菌是一类对宿主(人类或动物)有益的活性微生物,包括细菌、真菌(如酵母)等,具有促进动物生长、提高免疫力的作用,是潜在的抗生素替代品。益生菌可能通过与动物消化道微生物互作来发挥益生作用,但具体机制仍不明确。综述了基于高通量测序技术研究益生菌调控幼龄畜禽(仔猪、雏鸡、反刍动物)消化道微生物群落组成的最新进展,并提出了未来研究方向,包括益生菌如何通过与消化道微生物互作影响其功能,益生菌对于幼龄畜禽不同健康状态下肠道微生物的影响,以及宿主因素如何影响益生菌对于幼龄畜禽消化道微生物的作用效果。