Differences in microbiome and virome between cattle and horses in the same farm.
Abstract: The ecosystem of an animal farm is composed of various elements, such as animals, farmers, plants, feed, soil, and microorganisms. A domesticated animal's health is largely connected with the reservoir of bacteria and viruses in animal farms. Although a few studies have focused on exploring the gut microbiome of animals, communities of microbiota and viruses in feedlots have not been thoroughly investigated. Methods: Here, we collected feces and dust samples (4 groups: cattle feces, C_F; horse feces, H_F; cattle dust, C_D; and horse dust, H_D) from cattle and horse farms sharing the same housing and investigated their microbiome/virome communities by Illumina sequencing. Results: Dust groups (C_D and H_D) showed higher microbial diversity than feces groups (C_F and H_F) regardless of animal species. From the microbial community analysis, all the samples from the four groups have major phyla such as Proteobacteria (min 37.1% to max 42.8%), Firmicutes (19.1% to 24.9%), Bacteroidetes (10.6% to 22.1%), and Actinobacteria (6.1% to 20.5%). The abundance of Streptococcus, which commonly recognized as equine pathogens, was significantly higher in the horse group (H_D and H_F). Over 99% among the classified virome reads were classified as Caudovirales, a group of tailed bacteriophages, in all four groups. Foot-and-mouth disease virus and equine adenovirus, which cause deadly diseases in cattle and horse, respectively, were not detected. Conclusions: Our results will provide baseline information to understand different gut and environmental microbial ecology between two livestock species.
Publication Date: 2019-10-22 PubMed ID: 32054207PubMed Central: PMC7206377DOI: 10.5713/ajas.19.0267Google Scholar: Lookup
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Summary
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The research paper is focused on a study investigating the differences in microbiomes and viromes between cattle and horses on the same farm. The study explores the complexities in microbial and viral organisms amongst cattle and horses using advanced gene sequencing techniques.
Methods
- The researchers conducted their study by collecting fecal and dust samples from a farm housing both cattle and horses. For the purpose of the study, they created four groups for the samples: cattle feces (C_F), horse feces (H_F), cattle dust (C_D), and horse dust (H_D).
- These samples were then scrutinized using Illumina sequencing, a next-generation sequencing method that generates large amounts of DNA sequence data.
Results
- The findings from the research indicated higher microbial diversity in dust samples for both cattle and horses as compared to the fecal samples.
- Investigation of the microbial communities revealed the presence of several prominent phyla, including Proteobacteria, Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, and Actinobacteria, across all samples.
- The research pointed out a significant presence of Streptococcus, an equine pathogen, in the horse samples (H_D and H_F).
- In terms of the viromes present, over 99% of the reads were classified as Caudovirales (tailed bacteriophages) across all the four groups.
- Notably, the researchers did not find any trace of foot-and-mouth disease virus or equine adenovirus, both of which are known to cause fatal illnesses in cattle and horses, respectively.
Conclusion
- In conclusion, this research provides baseline information to better comprehend and to note the differences in gut and environmental microbial ecology between cattle and horses.
- Understanding these disparities in microbial and viral organisms is critical for implementing disease control measures, increasing animal productivity, and maintaining overall farm health.
Cite This Article
APA
Park J, Kim EB.
(2019).
Differences in microbiome and virome between cattle and horses in the same farm.
Asian-Australas J Anim Sci, 33(6), 1042-1055.
https://doi.org/10.5713/ajas.19.0267 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Department of Animal Life Science, College of Animal Life Science, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon 24341, Korea.
- Department of Animal Life Science, College of Animal Life Science, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon 24341, Korea.
- Department of Applied Animal Science, College of Animal Life Science, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon 24341, Korea.
Grant Funding
- National Research Foundation of Korea
- 2016R1C1B2016246 / Ministry of Education
Conflict of Interest Statement
. We certify that there is no conflict of interest with any financial organization regarding the material discussed in the manuscript.
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Citations
This article has been cited 6 times.- Kim HJ, Kim D, Kim KW, Lee SH, Jang A. Comparative analysis of the gut microbiota of mice fed a diet supplemented with raw and cooked beef loin powder. Sci Rep 2021 Jun 1;11(1):11489.
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