College of Animal Science and Technology, Shihezi University, Shihezi, Xinjiang, 832003, People's Republic of China.
College of Animal Science and Technology, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi, 712100, People's Republic of China.
BMC Microbiol. 2021 Mar 22;21(1):85. doi: 10.1186/s12866-021-02143-z.
Weaning stress of piglets causes a huge economic loss to the pig industry. Balance and stability of the intestinal microenvironment is an effective way to reduce the occurance of stress during the weaning process. Clostridium butyricum, as a new microecological preparation, is resistant to high temperature, acid, bile salts and some antibiotics. The aim of present study is to investigate the effects of C. butyricum on the intestinal microbiota and their metabolites in weaned piglets.
There was no statistical significance in the growth performance and the incidence of diarrhoea among the weaned piglets treated with C. butyricum during 0-21 days experimental period. Analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequencing results showed that the operational taxonomic units (OTUs), abundance-based coverage estimator (ACE) and Chao index of the CB group were found to be significantly increased compared with the NC group (P < 0.05). Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes and Tenericutes were the predominant bacterial phyla in the weaned piglets. A marked increase in the relative abundance of Megasphaera, Ruminococcaceae_NK4A214_group and Prevotellaceae_UCG-003, along with a decreased relative abundance of Ruminococcaceae_UCG-005 was observed in the CB group, when compared with the NC group (P < 0.05). With the addition of C. butyricum, a total of twenty-two significantly altered metabolites were obtained in the feces of piglets. The integrated pathway analysis by MetaboAnalyst indicated that arginine and proline metabolism; valine, leucine and isoleucine biosynthesis; and phenylalanine metabolism were the main three altered pathways, based on the topology. Furthermore, Spearman's analysis revealed some altered gut microbiota genus such as Oscillospira, Ruminococcaceae_NK4A214_group, Megasphaera, Ruminococcaceae_UCG-005, Prevotella_2, Ruminococcaceae_UCG-002, Rikenellaceae_RC9_gut_group and Prevotellaceae_UCG-003 were associated with the alterations in the fecal metabolites (P < 0.05), indicating that C. butyricum presented a potential protective impact through gut microbiota. The intestinal metabolites changed by C. butyricum mainly involved the variation of citrulline, dicarboxylic acids, branched-chain amino acid and tryptophan metabolic pathways.
Overall, this study strengthens the idea that the dietary C. butyricum treatment can significantly alter the intestinal microbiota and metabolite profiles of the weaned piglets, and C. butyricum can offer potential benefits for the gut health.
仔猪断奶应激会给养猪业造成巨大的经济损失。平衡和稳定肠道微环境是减少断奶过程中应激发生的有效方法。丁酸梭菌作为一种新型微生态制剂，具有耐高温、耐酸、耐胆盐和部分抗生素的特点。本研究旨在探讨丁酸梭菌对断奶仔猪肠道微生物群及其代谢物的影响。
在 0-21 天的试验期间，用丁酸梭菌处理的断奶仔猪在生长性能和腹泻发生率方面没有统计学意义。16S rRNA 基因测序结果分析表明，与 NC 组相比，CB 组的操作分类单元（OTUs）、基于丰度的覆盖估计值（ACE）和 Chao 指数显著增加（P<0.05）。拟杆菌门、厚壁菌门和梭杆菌门是断奶仔猪的主要细菌门。与 NC 组相比，CB 组中 Megasphaera、Ruminococcaceae_NK4A214_group 和 Prevotellaceae_UCG-003 的相对丰度显著增加，而 Ruminococcaceae_UCG-005 的相对丰度显著降低（P<0.05）。添加丁酸梭菌后，仔猪粪便中得到了 22 种明显改变的代谢物。MetaboAnalyst 的综合途径分析表明，基于拓扑结构，精氨酸和脯氨酸代谢；缬氨酸、亮氨酸和异亮氨酸生物合成；和苯丙氨酸代谢是主要的三个改变途径。此外，Spearman 分析显示，一些改变的肠道微生物属，如 Oscillospira、Ruminococcaceae_NK4A214_group、Megasphaera、Ruminococcaceae_UCG-005、Prevotella_2、Ruminococcaceae_UCG-002、Rikenellaceae_RC9_gut_group 和 Prevotellaceae_UCG-003 与粪便代谢物的改变有关（P<0.05），表明丁酸梭菌通过肠道微生物群呈现出潜在的保护作用。丁酸梭菌改变的肠道代谢物主要涉及瓜氨酸、二羧酸、支链氨基酸和色氨酸代谢途径的变化。
总的来说，本研究加强了这样一种观点，即丁酸梭菌的日粮处理可以显著改变断奶仔猪的肠道微生物群和代谢物谱，丁酸梭菌可以为肠道健康提供潜在的益处。
