Department of Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Animal Science and Food Engineering, University of São Paulo, Pirassununga, São Paulo, Brazil (Arantes); Department of Veterinary Clinical Science, College of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, São Paulo State University, Botucatu, São Paulo, Brazil (Borges); Department of Clinical Studies, Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario (Zakia, Weese, Arroyo); Department of Medicine, Farncombe Family Digestive Health Research Institute, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario (Surette); Department of Biomedicine, Veterinary Medicine Faculty, University of Montréal, Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec (Costa).
Can J Vet Res. 2023 Apr;87(2):97-104.
Iron is an essential element for all living organisms, including bacteria, as several virulence factors and replication components are influenced by iron concentration. The objective of this study was to determine whether the composition and diversity of the fecal microbiota of adult horses are affected by supplemental dietary iron. Ten clinically healthy horses were randomly divided into a control and an iron-supplemented group ( = 5). The treated group was supplemented with oral ferrous sulphate monohydrate (720 ppm of iron), whereas the control group received 320 ppm of iron daily for 15 d. Fecal samples were collected before and 5, 10, 15, and 30 d after supplementation and frozen at -80°C. DNA was sequenced using an Illumina MiSeq platform and data were analyzed using the software Mothur and linear discriminant analysis (LDA) effect size (LEfSe). Iron supplementation caused no change in the overall composition of the fecal microbiota, but some minor changes were observed in the low-abundant bacteria, as well as an increased diversity after 15 d of supplementation. Significant differences in community composition of the fecal microbiota over time were observed in both groups, highlighting the importance of a control group, as there are variables that cannot be controlled in microbiome studies.
铁是所有生物体（包括细菌）所必需的元素，因为几种毒力因子和复制成分受铁浓度的影响。本研究的目的是确定补充膳食铁是否会影响成年马粪便微生物群的组成和多样性。将 10 匹临床健康的马随机分为对照组和补铁组（每组 5 匹马）。治疗组口服补充一水硫酸亚铁（铁含量 720ppm），而对照组每天补充 320ppm 的铁，持续 15d。在补充前和补充后 5、10、15 和 30d 收集粪便样本，并在-80°C 下冷冻。使用 Illumina MiSeq 平台对 DNA 进行测序，并使用 Mothur 和线性判别分析（LDA）效应大小（LEfSe）软件进行数据分析。补铁未改变粪便微生物群的总体组成，但在低丰度细菌中观察到一些微小变化，并且在补充 15d 后多样性增加。两组粪便微生物群的组成随时间均发生显著变化，这突出了对照组的重要性，因为在微生物组研究中存在无法控制的变量。
