Longitudinal Changes in Fecal Microbiota During Hospitalization in Horses With Different Types of Colic.
Abstract: Research on fecal microbiota changes during hospitalization of horses with colic is emerging. Objective: Describe changes of the fecal microbiota during hospitalization of horses with colic caused by inflammatory (INFL), simple (SIMPLE), and strangulated (STR) obstructions, and investigate associations with survival. Methods: Twenty-three horses with colic: 9 in INFL, 5 in STR, and 9 in SIMPLE groups. Seventeen horses survived, and 6 were euthanized. Methods: Prospective observational study. Fecal samples were collected on admission (D1), on days 3 (D3) and 5 (D5). Bacterial taxonomy profiling was obtained by V1V3 16S amplicon sequencing. Data were compared using a 2-way permutational analysis of variance (PERMANOVA). Linear discriminant analysis Effect Size (LEfSE) analysis identified significant bacterial population differences, with significance set at p 3.0. Results: Alpha diversity indices remained stable during hospitalization within each colic group. However, at D5, the INFL group had significantly higher richness (p < 0.01) and diversity (Shannon, p < 0.001 and Simpson, p < 0.05) than other colic types. Beta diversity (Jaccard membership and Bray-Curtis indices) was significantly different in the INFL compared to SIMPLE and STR groups (both p < 0.001) but not between SIMPLE and STR. Beta diversity membership analysis by analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) indicated a significant difference between survivors and non-survivors within the INFL group (p < 0.01). Increased relative abundances of Bacilliculturomica and Saccharofermentans were associated with survival. Conclusions: Microbiota showed no significant variation over 5 days of hospitalization. Colic type influenced fecal microbiota more than hospitalization duration. Specific bacterial populations may differ between survival and non-survival groups.
© 2025 The Author(s). Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine.
Publication Date: 2025-03-06 PubMed ID: 40048584PubMed Central: PMC11884602DOI: 10.1111/jvim.70039Google Scholar: Lookup
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Summary
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This study investigated how hospitalization affects the fecal microbiota of horses suffering from different types of colic, and explored correlations between changes in these bacterial populations and the horses’ survival rates. The main findings were that the type of colic had a greater impact on the horses’ gut bacteria than the duration of hospitalization, and that horses with a higher abundance of certain bacteria were more likely to survive.
Methodology
- Twenty-three horses with colic were enrolled in this prospective observational study. Of these, nine had inflammatory obstructions (INFL group), five had strangulated obstructions (STR group), and nine had simple obstructions (SIMPLE group).
- Fecal samples were obtained when the horses were first admitted to the hospital (D1) and then again on the third (D3) and fifth (D5) days of their hospital stay.
- The research team used V1V3 16S amplicon sequencing to profile the bacteria present in the samples.
- Data was analysed using a 2-way permutational analysis of variance (PERMANOVA), and a test called linear discriminant analysis effect size (LEfSE) was used to identify significant differences in bacterial populations, with a significance level of p 3.0 for the linear discriminant analysis (LDA).
Results
- Alpha diversity indices, which measure the variety of organisms in a group, remained stable during hospitalization for each colic group.
- However, the INFL group had significantly higher microbial richness (a greater number of unique species) and diversity by D5 compared to the other colic types.
- The composition of the gut bacteria, or ‘beta diversity’, was significantly different in the INFL group compared to the SIMPLE and STR groups. But there was no significant difference between the SIMPLE and STR groups.
- An additional beta diversity membership analysis showed a significant difference between horses that survived and those that did not in the INFL group.
- Increased relative abundances of two specific bacterial groups, Bacilliculturomica and Saccharofermentans, were associated with survival.
Conclusions
- The microbial composition of the horses’ gut did not change significantly over the five-day hospitalisation period.
- The type of colic made a larger impact on the fecal microbiota than the duration of the horse’s hospital stay.
- Specific bacterial populations appeared to differ between horses that survived and those that did not, suggesting a possible connection between gut bacteria and outcomes for horses with different types of colic.
Cite This Article
APA
Loublier C, Costa M, Taminiau B, Lecoq L, Daube G, Amory H, Cesarini C.
(2025).
Longitudinal Changes in Fecal Microbiota During Hospitalization in Horses With Different Types of Colic.
J Vet Intern Med, 39(2), e70039.
https://doi.org/10.1111/jvim.70039 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Equine Clinical Department, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium.
- Fundamental and Applied Research for Animals & Health (FARAH), Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium.
- Department of Veterinary Biomedicine, University of Montreal, Q, Canada.
- Fundamental and Applied Research for Animals & Health (FARAH), Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium.
- Department of Food Sciences-Microbiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Liege, Liège, Belgium.
- Equine Clinical Department, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium.
- Fundamental and Applied Research for Animals & Health (FARAH), Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium.
- Fundamental and Applied Research for Animals & Health (FARAH), Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium.
- Department of Food Sciences-Microbiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Liege, Liège, Belgium.
- Equine Clinical Department, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium.
- Fundamental and Applied Research for Animals & Health (FARAH), Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium.
- Equine Clinical Department, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium.
- Fundamental and Applied Research for Animals & Health (FARAH), Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium.
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Horses
- Colic / veterinary
- Colic / microbiology
- Horse Diseases / microbiology
- Feces / microbiology
- Male
- Female
- Prospective Studies
- Hospitalization
- Gastrointestinal Microbiome
- Bacteria / classification
- Bacteria / genetics
- Bacteria / isolation & purification
Grant Funding
- Fonds Spu00e9ciaux de Recherche (DYSBIOHORSIRS)
- Fonds De La Recherche Scientifique - FNRS (Veterinary MD. Ph.D. VETE-CCD)
Conflict of Interest Statement
The authors declare no conflicts of interest.
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