Gut health in horses refers to the condition and functioning of the equine gastrointestinal system, which includes the stomach, small intestine, cecum, and colon. This system is responsible for the digestion and absorption of nutrients, as well as the maintenance of a balanced microbiome. The gut microbiome, consisting of a diverse community of microorganisms, plays a role in digestion, metabolism, and immune function. Factors such as diet, stress, medication, and environmental changes can impact gut health, potentially leading to issues like colic or laminitis. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the anatomy, physiology, and microbial ecology of the equine gut, as well as the implications for overall horse health and management practices.
ADAMS KM.The ciliate population of the large intestine of the horse shows large, daily variations. The ventral colon is the site where the ciliate fauna varies most. Two species, Cycloposthium edentatum and C. dentiferum, became established in the large intestine after passage through the stomach and small intestine. The introduction of new species into the ventral colon caused significant changes in the fauna of that part of the gut.
To provide some glimpses on the possibility of shaping the human gut microbiome (GM) through probiotic exchange with natural ecosystems, here we explored the impact of 15 days of daily interaction with horses on the GM of 10 urban-living Italian children. Specifically, the children were in close contact with the horses in an "educational farm", where they spent almost 10 h/day interacting with the animals. The children's GM was assessed before and after the horse interaction using metabarcoding sequencing and shotgun metagenomics, along with the horses' skin, oral and fecal microbiomes. Targ...
Daniels S, Martin S, Harris P, Moore-Colyer M.The in vitro gas production system (GPS), developed to estimate degradation of ruminant feedstuffs, has been adapted for equine use. This study aimed to characterise the bacterial community profile and metabolome of donor faeces and faecal inoculum within the GPS when fermenting the same diet as faecal donors. Six Welsh ponies on identical diets were faecal donors with samples collected for microbiome profiling and system inoculation. Gas production (manual pressure transducer technique) was performed for 156 h with 2 replicate bottles from each donor harvested at 8,20,28 and 36 h. Faecal an...
Prasad S, Patel B, Kumar P, Lall R.Postbiotics, which are preparations of inanimate microorganisms and their components, have emerged as a promising functional ingredient in animal health and nutrition. Postbiotics are primarily composed of microbial cell fractions, metabolites, enzymes, vitamins, polysaccharides, and short-chain fatty acids. Unlike probiotics, postbiotics do not contain live microorganisms, which strengthens their greater stability and safety in feed/food formulations. Postbiotics offer several beneficial effects, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, immune-modulatory, and antimicrobial actions. They enha...
Yerlikaya Z, Miranda-CasoLuengo R, Jahns H, Byrne O, Meijer WG, Mulcahy G, Walshe N.Cyathostomins are the most prevalent and currently considered the most pathogenic gastrointestinal nematodes in horses. Their life cycle includes an encystment phase within the large intestinal mucosa, where up to 90 % of the total worm burden resides. Clinical disease ranges from chronic protein-losing enteropathy to acute, sometimes fatal, typhlocolitis. Despite their significance, the ecological interplay between cyathostomins, the host immune response, and the gut microbiota remains poorly understood. To our knowledge, this is the first study to investigate these interactions at the mucos...
