FREE SHIPPING over $40
OVER 10000 FIVE-STAR REVIEWS
5% OFF ALL SUBSCRIPTIONS
100% HAPPINESS GUARANTEE
Analyze Diet
0
Frontiers in veterinary science2025; 11; 1493756; doi: 10.3389/fvets.2024.1493756

Microbiological effect of topically applied Weissella cibaria on equine pastern dermatitis.

Abstract: Equine pastern dermatitis (EPD) is a multifactorial disease with a change in the skin microbiome. The present study monitored the influence of Weissella cibaria Biocenol™ 4/8 D37 CCM 9015 stabilized on alginite on the skin microbiota of healthy horses and model patients with EPD. Based on clinical signs, EPD lesions were identified as exudative or proliferative forms. A comparison of the initial microbial community based on 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing revealed that there was a statistically significant difference between healthy vs. exudative (R = 0.52, p = 0.003) and exudative vs. proliferative communities (R = 0.78, p = 0.043). The healthy skin microbiota was dominated by the families Corynebacteriaceae (19.7 ± 15.8%) and Staphylococcaceae (15.8 ± 10.7%). Streptococcus (11.7 ± 4.1%) was the dominant genus in the exudative group together with Corynebacterium (11.0 ± 3.8%), while Staphylococcus (15.6 ± 14.5%) dominated the proliferative group. The genus Staphylococcus represented only 0.5% of the exudative skin microbial community, a major difference between EPD-affected lesion types. Upon application, there was a statistically significant shift in community composition in all the groups, including the healthy community; however, the change was the most significant in the exudative community. On average, the genus Weissella represented 80.0 ± 13.3% of the exudative and 49.0 ± 30.0% of the proliferative bacterial community during treatment. One week after the application period, richness and diversity increased and were comparable in all groups. The application of the W. cibaria strain was associated with a significant decrease of the genera Staphylococcus, Moraxella, and Rothia in the proliferative group and with a decrease of Streptococcus and Clostridium in both exudative and proliferative groups. Based on our results, we conclude that a topically applied W. cibaria RIFR, stabilized on alginit, induced potentially beneficial shifts in the composition of the skin microbiota.
Copyright © 2025 Styková, Valocký, Kačírová and Fecskeová.
Get Full Text
Publication Date: 2025-01-06 PubMed ID: 39834920PubMed Central: PMC11743981DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2024.1493756Google Scholar: Lookup
The Equine Research Bank provides access to a large database of publicly available scientific literature. Inclusion in the Research Bank does not imply endorsement of study methods or findings by Mad Barn.
LinkedInCopy
  • Journal Article

Summary

This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.

The research study focused on investigating the impact of the topical application of Weissella cibaria (a type of bacteria) stabilized on alginite on the skin microbiota of healthy horses and horses with equine pastern dermatitis (EPD), a common skin disease in horses. It found that this application caused beneficial changes to the skin microbiota, significantly affecting the bacterial communities, particularly in horses with the exudative type of EPD.

Analysis of Equine Pastern Dermatitis

  • The study acknowledged that EPD is a multifaceted disorder affecting the skin of horses. It primarily focused on the variations of the disease – exudative and proliferative, based on their clinical signs.
  • By examining the microbial community in EPD lesions through 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing, the study identified significant differences between the skin microbiota of healthy and EPD-affected horses and also between the two forms of EPD.

Initial Microbial Community

  • The report outlined the initial microbial composition, pointing out the prevalence of two families – Corynebacteriaceae and Staphylococcaceae – in healthy horses.
  • It provided details of the prevalent genera in affected horses, noting significant differences between the bacterial communities in exudative and proliferative forms of EPD.

Impact of Weissella cibaria application

  • Applying Weissella cibaria to the skin of the horses led to noteworthy shifts in the microbial community across all groups, including healthy horses.
  • This shift was particularly pronounced in horses suffering from the exudative form of EPD.
  • Following the application, there was an increase in the proportion of the Weissella cibaria genus in both the exudative and proliferative bacterial communities.

Post-Treatment Observations

  • After a week, the study noted an increase in microbial richness and diversity, reaching comparable levels across all groups.
  • The treatment was associated with a noteworthy decrease in certain bacterial genera in the proliferative group and in both exudative and proliferative groups.

Conclusion

  • The research concluded that Weissella cibaria application could induce advantageous changes to the skin microbiota composition. This finding suggests potential benefits for the treatment of EPD in horses, warranting further research.

Cite This Article

APA
Styková E, Valocký I, Kačírová J, Fecskeová LK. (2025). Microbiological effect of topically applied Weissella cibaria on equine pastern dermatitis. Front Vet Sci, 11, 1493756. https://doi.org/10.3389/fvets.2024.1493756

Publication

Frontiers in veterinary science
ISSN: 2297-1769
NlmUniqueID: 101666658
Country: Switzerland
Language: English
Volume: 11
Pages: 1493756

Researcher Affiliations

Styková, Eva
  • University Veterinary Hospital, Clinic for Horses, University of Veterinary Medicine and Pharmacy in Košice, Košice, Slovakia.
Valocký, Igor
  • University Veterinary Hospital, Clinic for Horses, University of Veterinary Medicine and Pharmacy in Košice, Košice, Slovakia.
Kačírová, Jana
  • Institute of Plant Genetics and Biotechnology, Plant Science and Biodiversity Centre, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Nitra, Slovakia.
Fecskeová, Lívia Kolesár
  • Associated Tissue Bank, Faculty of Medicine, Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice, Košice, Slovakia.

Conflict of Interest Statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

References

This article includes 52 references
  1. Scott DW, Miller WH. Miscellaneous skin diseases in equine dermatology.. St. Louis: Elsevier/Saunders. (2011) p. 460–461.
  2. Knottenbelt D. A frustrating condition – pastern dermatitis syndrome.. Equine Health (2013) 2013:27–30.
    doi: 10.12968/eqhe.2013.1.10.27pubmed: 0google scholar: lookup
  3. Yu AA. Equine pastern dermatitis.. Vet Clin North Am Equine Pract (2013) 29:577–88.
    doi: 10.1016/j.cveq.2013.09.003pubmed: 24267676google scholar: lookup
  4. Osman SA, Hanafy A, Amer SE. Clinical and therapeutic studies on mange in horses.. Vet Parasitol (2006) 141:191–5.
    doi: 10.1016/j.vetpar.2006.04.039pubmed: 16782277google scholar: lookup
  5. Aufox EE, Frank LA, May ER, Kania SA. The prevalence of Dermatophilus congolensis in horses with pastern dermatitis using PCR to diagnose infection in a population of horses in southern USA.. Vet Dermatol (2018) 29:435–e144.
    doi: 10.1111/vde.12659pubmed: 29926986google scholar: lookup
  6. Rüfenacht S, Roosje PJ, Sager H, Doherr MG, Straub R, Goldinger-Müller P. Combined moxidectin and environmental therapy do not eliminate Chorioptes bovis infestation in heavily feathered horses.. Vet Dermatol (2011) 22:17–23.
    doi: 10.1111/j.1365-3164.2010.00892.xpubmed: 20609205google scholar: lookup
  7. Akucewich LH, Yu AA. Equine pastern dermatitis.. Compend Equine Educ (2007) 2:214–28.
  8. Raizner NT, Gedon NKY, Zablotski Y, Kania SA, Kühnle HF, Kühnle C. Epidemiological observations on pastern dermatitis in young horses and evaluation of essential fatty acid spot-on applications with or without phytosphingosine as prophylactic treatment.. Vet Dermatol (2022) 33:221–e62.
    doi: 10.1111/vde.13066pubmed: 35293641google scholar: lookup
  9. Wong VW, Martindale RG, Longaker MT, Gurtner GC. From germ theory to germ therapy: skin microbiota, chronic wounds, and probiotics.. Plast Reconst Surg (2013) 132:854e–61e.
    doi: 10.1097/PRS.0b013e3182a3c11epubmed: 24165637google scholar: lookup
  10. Johnson TR, Gómez BI, McIntyre MK, Dubick MA, Christy RJ, Nicholson SE. The cutaneous microbiome and wounds: new molecular targets to promote wound healing.. Int J Mol Sci (2018) 19:699.
    doi: 10.3390/ijms19092699pmc: PMC6164292pubmed: 30208569google scholar: lookup
  11. Federici M, Gerber V, Doherr MG, Klopfenstein S, Burger D. Association of skin problems with coat, colour and white markings in three-year-old horses of the Franches-Montagnes breed.. Schweiz Arch Tierheilkd (2015) 157:391–8.
    doi: 10.17236/sat00026pubmed: 26753358google scholar: lookup
  12. Kaiser-Thom S, Hilty M, Axiak S, Gerber V. The skin microbiota in equine pastern dermatitis: a case-control study of horses in Switzerland.. Vet Dermatol (2021) 32:646–e172.
    doi: 10.1111/vde.12955pmc: PMC9290916pubmed: 33830562google scholar: lookup
  13. Sangiorgio DB, Hilty M, Kaiser-Thom S, Epper PG, Ramseyer AA, Overesch G. The influence of clinical severity and topical antimicrobial treatment on bacteriological culture and the microbiota of equine pastern dermatitis.. Vet Dermatol (2021) 32:173–e41.
    doi: 10.1111/vde.12912pmc: PMC8048527pubmed: 33417744google scholar: lookup
  14. Styková E, Nemcová R, Maďar M, Bujňáková D, Mucha R, Gancarčíková S. Antibiofilm activity of Weissella spp. and Bacillus coagulans isolated from equine skin against Staphylococcus aureus.. Life (Basel) (2022) 12:2135.
    doi: 10.3390/life12122135pmc: PMC9787530pubmed: 36556500google scholar: lookup
  15. Ross AA, Müller KM, Weese JS, Neufeld JD. Comprehensive skin microbiome analysis reveals the uniqueness of human skin and evidence for phylosymbiosis within the class Mammalia.. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA (2018) 115:E5786–95.
    doi: 10.1073/pnas.1801302115pmc: PMC6016819pubmed: 29871947google scholar: lookup
  16. Andrews S. FastQC: a quality control tool for high throughput sequence data.. (2010) Available at: http://www.bioinformatics.babraham.ac.uk/projects/fastqc/.
  17. Callahan BJ, McMurdie P, Rosen M. DADA2: high-resolution sample inference from Illumina amplicon data.. Nat Methods (2016) 13:581–3.
    doi: 10.1038/nmeth.3869pmc: PMC4927377pubmed: 27214047google scholar: lookup
  18. Pruesse E, Quast C, Knittel K, Fuchs BM, Ludwig W, Peplies J. SILVA: a comprehensive online resource for quality checked and aligned ribosomal RNA sequence data compatible with ARB.. Nucleic Acids Res (2007) 35:7188–96.
    doi: 10.1093/nar/gkm864pmc: PMC2175337pubmed: 17947321google scholar: lookup
  19. McMurdie PJ, Holmes S. Phyloseq: an R package for reproducible interactive analysis and graphics of microbiome census data.. PLoS One (2013) 8:e61217.
    doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0061217pmc: PMC3632530pubmed: 23630581google scholar: lookup
  20. Oksanen J, Simpson L, Blanchet FG, Kindt R, Legendre P, Minchin PR. vegan: Community ecology package.. R package version 2.6–4. (2022) Available at: https://CRAN.R-project.org/package=vegan.
  21. Wickham H, François R, Henry L, Müller K, Vaughan D. dplyr: A grammar of data manipulation.. (2023) Available at: https://dplyr.tidyverse.org, https://github.com/tidyverse/dplyr.
  22. Wickham H. ggplot2: Elegant graphics for data analysis.. New York, NY: Springer-Verlag; (2016).
  23. Gerber V, Kaiser-Thom S, Oesch S. Equine pastern dermatitis: a narrative review on clinical presentation, diagnosis, risk factors, prevention, and therapeutic approaches.. J Am Vet Med Assoc (2023) 261:S58–65.
    doi: 10.2460/javma.22.12.0569pubmed: 36917616google scholar: lookup
  24. Wilmink JM, Ladefoged S, Jongbloets A, Vernooij JCM. The evaluation of the effect of probiotics on the healing of equine distal limb wounds.. PLoS One (2020) 15:e0236761.
    doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0236761pmc: PMC7390451pubmed: 32726347google scholar: lookup
  25. Brindza J, Vozár Ľ, Miko M, Gažo J, Kovár P, Horčinová Sedláčková V. Unique effects of alginite as a bituminous rock on soil, water, plants and animal organisms – review.. Agrobiodivers Improv Nutr Health Life Qual (2021) 5:169–84.
    doi: 10.15414/ainhlq.2021.0016google scholar: lookup
  26. Styková E, Nemcová R, Valocký I. Probiotic preparation, method of its preparation and use of probiotic preparation.. SK patent no SK 288782, international publication number WO/2018/029595. Banská Bystrica: Industrial Property Office of the Slovak Republic; (2020).
  27. Rossi F, Amadoro C, Colavita G. Members of the lactobacillus genus complex (LGC) as opportunistic pathogens: a review.. Microorganisms (2019) 7:126.
    doi: 10.3390/microorganisms7050126pmc: PMC6560513pubmed: 31083452google scholar: lookup
  28. Sturino JM. Literature-based safety assessment of an agriculture- and animal-associated microorganism: Weissella confusa.. Regul Toxicol Pharmacol (2018) 95:142–52.
    doi: 10.1016/j.yrtph.2018.03.013pubmed: 29567328google scholar: lookup
  29. Öz E, Kaban G, Barış O, Kaya M. Isolation and identification of lactic acid bacteria from pastırma.. Food Control (2017) 77:158–62.
    doi: 10.1016/j.foodcont.2017.02.017google scholar: lookup
  30. Kang BK, Cho MS, Park DS. Red pepper powder is a crucial factor that influences the ontogeny of Weissella cibaria during kimchi fermentation.. Sci Rep (2016) 6:28232.
    doi: 10.1038/srep28232pmc: PMC4911571pubmed: 27311801google scholar: lookup
  31. Ahmed S, Singh S, Singh V, Roberts KD, Zaidi A, Rodriguez-Palacios A. The Weissella genus: clinically treatable bacteria with antimicrobial/probiotic effects on inflammation and cancer.. Microorganisms (2022) 10:2427.
    doi: 10.3390/microorganisms10122427pmc: PMC9788376pubmed: 36557680google scholar: lookup
  32. Jang YJ, Gwon HM, Jeong WS, Yeo SH, Kim SY. Safety evaluation of Weissella cibaria JW15 by phenotypic and genotypic property analysis.. Microorganisms (2021) 9:2450.
    doi: 10.3390/microorganisms9122450pmc: PMC8704421pubmed: 34946052google scholar: lookup
  33. Lim SK, Kwon MS, Lee J, Oh YJ, Jang JY, Lee JH. Weissella cibaria WIKIM28 ameliorates atopic dermatitis-like skin lesions by inducing tolerogenic dendritic cells and regulatory T cells in BALB/c mice.. Sci Rep (2017) 7:40040.
    doi: 10.1038/srep40040pmc: PMC5220369pubmed: 28067304google scholar: lookup
  34. Yeu JE, Lee HG, Park GY, Lee J, Kang MS. Antimicrobial and antibiofilm activities of Weissella cibaria against pathogens of upper respiratory tract infections.. Microorganisms (2021) 9:1181.
    doi: 10.3390/microorganisms9061181pmc: PMC8229644pubmed: 34070813google scholar: lookup
  35. Kang CE, Park YJ, Kim JH, Lee NK, Paik HD. Probiotic Weissella cibaria displays antibacterial and anti-biofilm effect against cavity-causing Streptococcus mutans.. Microb Pathog (2023) 180:106151.
    doi: 10.1016/j.micpath.2023.106151pubmed: 37172659google scholar: lookup
  36. Kaiser-Thom S, Hilty M, Ramseyer A, Epper P, Gerber V. The relationship between equine pastern dermatitis, meteorological factors, and the skin microbiota.. Vet Dermatol (2022) 33:165–e48.
    doi: 10.1111/vde.13045pmc: PMC9300176pubmed: 34888974google scholar: lookup
  37. O'Shaughnessy-Hunter LC, Yu A, Rousseau JD, Foster RA, Weese JS. Longitudinal study of the cutaneous microbiota of healthy horses.. Vet Dermatol (2021) 32:467–e128.
    doi: 10.1111/vde.12983pubmed: 34165828google scholar: lookup
  38. Salamzade R, Swaney MH, Kalan LR. Comparative genomic and metagenomic investigations of the Corynebacterium tuberculostearicum species complex reveals potential mechanisms underlying associations to skin health and disease.. Microbiol Spectr (2023) 11:e0357822.
    doi: 10.1128/spectrum.03578-22pmc: PMC9927478pubmed: 36541755google scholar: lookup
  39. Altonsy MO, Kurwa HA, Lauzon GJ, Amrein M, Gerber AN, Almishri W. Corynebacterium tuberculostearicum, a human skin colonizer, induces the canonical nuclear factor-κB inflammatory signaling pathway in human skin cells.. Immun Inflamm Dis (2020) 8:62–79.
    doi: 10.1002/iid3.284pmc: PMC7016847pubmed: 31912662google scholar: lookup
  40. Aleman M, Spier SJ, Wilson WD, Doherr M. Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis infection in horses: 538 cases (1982-1993).. J Am Vet Med Assoc (1996) 209:804–9.
    doi: 10.2460/javma.1996.209.04.804pubmed: 8756884google scholar: lookup
  41. Kilcoyne I, Spier SJ, Carter CN, Smith JL, Swinford AK, Cohen ND. Frequency of Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis infection in horses across the United States during a 10-year period.. J Am Vet Med Assoc (2014) 245:309–14.
    doi: 10.2460/javma.245.3.309pubmed: 25029310google scholar: lookup
  42. Grönthal TSC, Lehto AK, Aarnio SS, Eskola EK, Aimo-Koivisto EM, Karlsson T. Pastern dermatitis outbreak associated with toxigenic and non-toxigenic Corynebacterium diphtheriae and non-toxigenic Corynebacterium ulcerans at a horse stable in Finland, 2021.. Zoonoses Public Health (2024) 71:127–35.
    doi: 10.1111/zph.13090pubmed: 37926867google scholar: lookup
  43. Seeger MG, Corrêa LFD, Clothier KA, Loy JD, Cargnelutti JF. Isolation of Moraxella spp. from horses with conjunctivitis in southern Brazil.. Braz J Microbiol (2021) 52:1643–8.
    doi: 10.1007/s42770-021-00507-1pmc: PMC8324631pubmed: 33931826google scholar: lookup
  44. Lim JY, Hwang I, Ganzorig M, Huang SL, Cho GS, Franz CMAP. Complete genome sequences of three Moraxella osloensis strains isolated from human skin.. Genome Announc (2018) 6:e01509–17.
    doi: 10.1128/genomeA.01509-17pmc: PMC5773745pubmed: 29348360google scholar: lookup
  45. Rabionet A, Vivar KL, Mancl K, Bennett AE, Shenefelt P. Ecthyma associated with Moraxella and Staphylococcus epidermidis.. JAAD Case Rep (2016) 2:473–5.
    doi: 10.1016/j.jdcr.2016.09.017pmc: PMC5148780pubmed: 27981222google scholar: lookup
  46. Oliveira IMF, Ng DYK, van Baarlen P, Stegger M, Andersen PS, Wells JM. Comparative genomics of Rothia species reveals diversity in novel biosynthetic gene clusters and ecological adaptation to different eukaryotic hosts and host niches.. Microb Genom (2022) 8:mgen000854.
    doi: 10.1099/mgen.0.000854pmc: PMC9676035pubmed: 36165601google scholar: lookup
  47. Miernikiewicz P, Barylski J, Wilczak A, Dragoš A, Rybicka I, Bałdysz S. New phage-derived antibacterial enzyme polaR targeting Rothia spp.. Cells (2023) 12:1997.
    doi: 10.3390/cells12151997pmc: PMC10417112pubmed: 37566076google scholar: lookup
  48. Li CJ, Zhang Z, Zhan PC, Lv AP, Li PP, Liu L. Comparative genomic analysis and proposal of Clostridium yunnanense sp. nov., clostridium rhizosphaerae sp. nov., and clostridium paridis sp. nov., three novel Clostridium sensu stricto endophytes with diverse capabilities of acetic acid and ethanol production.. Anaerobe (2023) 79:102686.
    doi: 10.1016/j.anaerobe.2022.102686pubmed: 36535584google scholar: lookup
  49. Goen AE, MacLea KS. Genome sequence of Kurthia type species Kurthia zopfii strain ATCC 33403T.. Microbiol Resour Announc (2018) 7:e00833–18.
    doi: 10.1128/MRA.00833-18pmc: PMC6211344pubmed: 30533610google scholar: lookup
  50. Lorenzo JM, Munekata PE, Dominguez R, Pateiro M, Saraiva JA, Franco D. Main groups of microorganisms of relevance for food safety and stability: general aspects and overall description. In: Barba FJ, Sant'Ana AS, Orlien V, Koubaa M, editors. Innovative technologies for food preservation. Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States: Academic Press; (2018). 53–107.
  51. Lozica L, Maurić Maljković M, Mazić M, Gottstein Ž. Kurthia gibsonii, a novel opportunistic pathogen in poultry.. Avian Pathol (2022) 51:26–33.
    doi: 10.1080/03079457.2021.1993132pubmed: 34662527google scholar: lookup
  52. Kamus LJ, Theoret C, Costa MC. Use of next generation sequencing to investigate the microbiota of experimentally induced wounds and the effect of bandaging in horses.. PLoS One (2018) 13:e0206989.
    doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0206989pmc: PMC6261015pubmed: 30475922google scholar: lookup

Citations

This article has been cited 0 times.
Subscribe to our newsletter
Join 99,824 horse owners like you who receive our email updates on horse health and nutrition.