The effect of early social contact on the community structure and functions of fecal microbiome in suckling - growing piglets

Abstract Background: Social contact in the early suckling period as an enriched social environment can reduce the aggressive behaviors of piglets at weaning regrouping, and improve their production performance and welfare. We speculated that the social environment could modulate the maturation of piglet intestinal microbiota at later growth stages. Therefore, we performed microbial 16S rRNA gene sequencing from fecal samples, collected at 16, 35, 42, and 63 days of age, to investigate the structure and function of intestinal microbiota in piglets that experienced early social contact. Results: The results showed that the litter weight of the piglets was not significantly different between the control (CON) and social contact (SC) groups at 35 days of age (P > 0.05), but the weight of piglets in the SC group significantly decreased at 63 days compared to the CON group (P < 0.05). While the proportion of Firmicutes were the most abundant bacterial phylum detected in both groups at all times, the proportion of Firmicutes and the Firmicutes-to-Bacteroides ratio were significantly higher in the SC group compared to the CON group and the proportion of Bacteroides was lower in the SC group compared to the CON group at 35, 42, and 63 days of age (P < 0.05). At the genus level, early social contact had a significant positive effect on the level of Lactobacillus at 35 and 42 days of age (P < 0.05), but a negative effect on Prevotella at 35, 42, and 63 days of age (P < 0.05). Furthermore, functional analysis of the microbial composition showed that the changes induced by early social contact mainly altered the relative abundance of metabolic and related pathways. From 35 days of age, the social contact notably had a negative effect on the abundance microbial pathways for protein digestion and absorption and lipid metabolism (P < 0.05). Conclusions: Early social contact truly changed the taxonomy of fecal microbiota in piglets, which in turn, impacted the potential for microbial function within the piglet intestine. At present, we speculate that providing continuous social contact negatively influences the nutrient metabolism for the growing piglets.

Download Full-text

Ratio of Klebsiella/Bifidobacterium in early life correlates with later development of paediatric allergy

Beneficial Microbes ◽

10.3920/bm2017.0020 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 8 (5) ◽

pp. 681-695 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

J.S.Y. Low ◽

S.-E. Soh ◽

Y.K. Lee ◽

K.Y.C. Kwek ◽

J.D. Holbrook ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Intestinal Microbiota ◽

Allergic Disease ◽

Early Life ◽

16S Rrna Gene Sequencing ◽

Early Infancy ◽

Rrna Gene ◽

Microbial Composition ◽

Healthy Infants ◽

Increased Risk ◽

Paediatric Allergy

Several studies have reported that intestinal microbial colonisation patterns differ between non-allergic and allergic infants. However, the microbial signature underlying the pathogenesis of allergies remains unclear. We aim to gain insight into the development of the intestinal microbiota of healthy infants and infants who develop allergy in early life, and identify potential microbiota biomarkers of later allergic disease. Using a case-control design in a Chinese sub-cohort of a Singaporean birth cohort (GUSTO), we utilised 16S rRNA gene sequencing to assess intestinal microbial composition and diversity of 21 allergic and 18 healthy infants at 3 weeks, 3 months and 6 months of age, and correlated the microbiota with allergy at ages 18 and 36 months. Pronounced differences in intestinal microbiota composition between allergic and healthy infants were observed at 3 months of age. The intestine of healthy infants was colonised with higher abundance of commensal Bifidobacterium. Conversely, Klebsiella, an opportunistic pathogen, was significantly enriched in the allergic infants. Interestingly, infants with a high Klebsiella/Bifidobacterium (K/B) ratio (above the population median K/B ratio) at age 3 months had an odds ratio of developing allergy by 3 years of age of 9.00 (95% confidence interval 1.46-55.50) compared to those with low K/B ratio. This study demonstrated a relationship between the ratio of genera Klebsiella and Bifidobacterium during early infancy and development of paediatric allergy in childhood. Our study postulates that an elevated K/B ratio in early infancy could be a potential indicator of an increased risk of allergy development. This line of research might enable future intervention strategies in early life to prevent or treat allergy. Our study provides new insights into microbial signatures associated with childhood allergy, in particular, suggests that an elevated K/B ratio could be a potential early-life microbiota biomarker of allergic disease.

Download Full-text

The intestinal microbiota-driven dopamine level influences social interaction and innate color preference in zebrafish larvae

10.1101/2021.02.26.433134 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Ju Wang ◽

Feng Zheng ◽

Lifeng Yin ◽

Shengnan Shi ◽

bing hu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Social Interaction ◽

Intestinal Microbiota ◽

Social Contact ◽

Social Recognition ◽

Color Preference ◽

Dopamine Level ◽

Zebrafish Larvae ◽

The Social ◽

Shoaling Behavior ◽

The Relationship

Gut microbiota influence neurodevelopment of brain and programing of behaviors. However, the mechanism underlining the relationship between shoals' behaviors and intestinal microbiota remain controversial and the roles of neurotransmitters are still unclear. Here we show that, shoaling behavior affected the innate color preference of shoals, indicating that shoals tended to choose a favorable color environment that benefits social contact. Meanwhile, administration of D1-R antagonist disrupted the social interaction which led to the deficits of color preference. More importantly, the altered microbiota caused by an antibiotic OTC decreased the sociability and weakened shoals' color preference. When given a supplement of LGG after OTC exposure, fish exhibited an unexpectedly recovery capability in social cohesion and color preference. Our findings show that dopamine level of brain could mediate both social recognition and color preference, and highlight the pathway of microbial metabolites through the microbiota-gut-brain axis that coordinate the production of dopamine.

Download Full-text

Exploring the role of gut microbiota in host feeding behavior among breeds in swine

BMC Microbiology ◽

10.1186/s12866-021-02409-6 ◽

2022 ◽

Vol 22 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Yuqing He ◽

Francesco Tiezzi ◽

Jeremy Howard ◽

Yijian Huang ◽

Kent Gray ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Gut Microbiota ◽

Feeding Behavior ◽

Growth Stages ◽

Rrna Gene ◽

Sequence Variants ◽

Host Feeding ◽

Microbial Composition ◽

Large White ◽

Rrna Gene Sequencing ◽

Host Metabolism

Abstract Background The interplay between the gut microbiota and feeding behavior has consequences for host metabolism and health. The present study aimed to explore gut microbiota overall influence on feeding behavior traits and to identify specific microbes associated with the traits in three commercial swine breeds at three growth stages. Feeding behavior measures were obtained from 651 pigs of three breeds (Duroc, Landrace, and Large White) from an average 73 to 163 days of age. Seven feeding behavior traits covered the information of feed intake, feeder occupation time, feeding rate, and the number of visits to the feeder. Rectal swabs were collected from each pig at 73 ± 3, 123 ± 4, and 158 ± 4 days of age. DNA was extracted and subjected to 16 S rRNA gene sequencing. Results Differences in feeding behavior traits among breeds during each period were found. The proportion of phenotypic variances of feeding behavior explained by the gut microbial composition was small to moderate (ranged from 0.09 to 0.31). A total of 21, 10, and 35 amplicon sequence variants were found to be significantly (q-value < 0.05) associated with feeding behavior traits for Duroc, Landrace, and Large White across the three sampling time points. The identified amplicon sequence variants were annotated to five phyla, with Firmicutes being the most abundant. Those amplicon sequence variants were assigned to 28 genera, mainly including Christensenellaceae_R-7_group, Ruminococcaceae_UCG-004, Dorea, Ruminococcaceae_UCG-014, and Marvinbryantia. Conclusions This study demonstrated the importance of the gut microbial composition in interacting with the host feeding behavior and identified multiple archaea and bacteria associated with feeding behavior measures in pigs from either Duroc, Landrace, or Large White breeds at three growth stages. Our study provides insight into the interaction between gut microbiota and feeding behavior and highlights the genetic background and age effects in swine microbial studies.

Download Full-text

Structural changes in the gut microbiome of constipated patients

Physiological Genomics ◽

10.1152/physiolgenomics.00082.2014 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 46 (18) ◽

pp. 679-686 ◽

Cited By ~ 119

Author(s):

Lixin Zhu ◽

Wensheng Liu ◽

Razan Alkhouri ◽

Robert D. Baker ◽

Jonathan E. Bard ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Structural Changes ◽

Global Changes ◽

Rrna Gene ◽

Microbial Composition ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Fecal Microbiome ◽

Bacterial Fermentation ◽

Fiber Diet ◽

Probiotic Treatment ◽

Butyrate Production

Previous studies using culture-based methods suggested an association between constipation and altered abundance of certain taxa of the colonic microbiome. We aim to examine the global changes in gut microbial composition of constipated patients. A cross-sectional pilot study using 16S rRNA gene pyrosequencing was performed to compare stool microbial composition of eight constipated patients and 14 nonconstipated controls. Only obese children were enrolled so that the microbiome features associated with constipation would not be obscured by those associated with obesity. The sequencing reads were processed by QIIME for quantitative analysis of the microbial composition at genus and above levels. Dietary intake for all the individuals was assessed by dietary recalls and a food frequency questionnaire. The ecological diversities of fecal microbiome of the constipated patients differed from those of the controls. Significantly decreased abundance in Prevotella and increased representation in several genera of Firmicutes were observed in constipated patients compared with controls. The conventional probiotic genera Lactobacillus and Bifidobacteria were not decreased in the microbiomes of the constipated patients. These alterations in the fecal microbiome of constipated patients suggested that a novel probiotic treatment including certain Prevotella strains may be more effective than conventional probiotic products incorporating Lactobacillus or Bifidobacterium species. While it is possible that the observed changes in the microbiome in constipated subjects are a consequence of a low-fiber diet, these changes also predict a different pattern of bacterial fermentation end-products, such as increased butyrate production, which may contribute to pathogenesis of constipation.

Download Full-text

Social Environment and Healthy Investment Behavior: Joint Influence of Culture and Institution on China

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph19010607 ◽

2022 ◽

Vol 19 (1) ◽

pp. 607

Author(s):

Dongao Li ◽

Songdong Shen

Keyword(s):

Social Environment ◽

Direct Investment ◽

Cultural Distance ◽

Institutional Distance ◽

Investment Behavior ◽

Joint Influence ◽

The Social ◽

Negative Effect ◽

Using Data ◽

The Impact

The influence of the social environment on healthy investment behavior is a vital research topic. This paper focuses on foreign direct investment (FDI) as an important part of its broad impact in improving the level of capital circulation and diversifying the non-systemic risk of a single country portfolio. Using data from 35 countries on direct investment in China, we find that the impact of the social environment on healthy investment behavior is mainly reflected in investors’ resistance to cultural distance and their benefit compensation across institutional distance. In addition, their joint influence is still negative, dominated by cultural distance, which can still verify that institutional distance mitigates the negative effect of cultural distance on FDI. Therefore, in order to promote international healthy investment behavior, it is feasible to improve both the mitigation effect of the institution in the short term and promote the level of cultural exchange in the long term, according to the research results of this paper.

Download Full-text

KEBAHAGIAAN PADA WANITA PLARI DEPO (Studi Kualitatif-Deskriptif Di Kabupaten Sikka Nusa Tenggara Timur)

PSYCHOPEDIA : Jurnal Psikologi Universitas Buana Perjuangan Karawang ◽

10.36805/psikologi.v4i1.719 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 4 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Marhisar Simatupang

Keyword(s):

Family Support ◽

Social Environment ◽

Real Data ◽

Cultural Background ◽

Qualitative Approach ◽

First Year ◽

The Third ◽

The Social ◽

Negative Effect ◽

Depth Interviews

Abstract. This study aims to determine the description of the happiness of Plari Depo women. The method used in this study uses a descriptive qualitative approach by presenting the socio-cultural background that occurs in Sikka Regency, East Nusa Tenggara. The informants in this study were couples who married without following the marriage procedures in accordance in Sikka District etnic, which numbered 30 pairs and had only been married for less than 3 years. The 30 pairs were randomized for in-depth interviews to get the real data. 7 families were selected as primary informants consisting of young and old ages. The results found that the level of happiness of Plari Depo women in the first year was classified as low due to negative responses from the social environment, loss of family support and conflict with partners. In the third year the level of happiness began to improve due to the presence of children and women who do not care about the environment that gives a negative effect. Keywords: Happiness, Plari Depo Women Abstrak. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui gambaran kebahagiaan wanita plari depo. Metode yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini adalah menggunakan pendekatan kualitatif deskriptif dengan menyajikan latar sosial-budaya yang terjadi di Kabupaten Sikka Nusa Tenggara Timur. Informan dalam penelitian ini adalah pasangan yang menikah tanpa mengikuti prosedur perkawinan sesuai dengan adat di Kabupaten Sikka yang berjumlah 30 pasang dan baru menikah kurang dari 3 tahun. 30 pasang tersebut diacak untuk dilakukan wawancara secara mendalam untuk mendapatkan data yang sesungguhnya. 7 keluarga terpilih menjadi informan primer yang terdiri dari usia muda dan tua. Hasil penelitian menemukan bahwa tingkat kebahagiaan wanita plari depo pada tahun pertama adalah tergolong rendah disebabkan adanya respon negatif dari lingkungan sosial, hilangnya dukungan keluarga dan terjadinya konflik dengan pasangan. Pada tahun ketiga tingkat kebahagiaan mulai membaik disebabkan kehadiran anak dan wanita sudah tidak perduli terhadap lingkungan yang memberikan efek negatif. Kata Kunci: Kebahagiaan, Wanita Plari Depo

Download Full-text

Analysis of Hindgut Microbiome of Sheep and Effect of Different Husbandry Conditions

Animals ◽

10.3390/ani11010004 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

pp. 4

Author(s):

Giulietta Minozzi ◽

Filippo Biscarini ◽

Emanuela Dalla Costa ◽

Matteo Chincarini ◽

Nicola Ferri ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Animal Health ◽

Control Group ◽

P Value ◽

Rrna Gene ◽

Microbial Composition ◽

Core Microbiome ◽

Fecal Microbiome ◽

Microbiome Composition ◽

The Core ◽

Wide Range

The microbiome is now seen as an important resource to understand animal health and welfare in many species. However, there are few studies aiming at identifying the association between fecal microbiome composition and husbandry conditions in sheep. A wide range of stressors associated with management and housing of animals increases the hypothalamic–pituitary axis activity, with growing evidence that the microbiome composition can be modified. Therefore, the purpose of the present study was to describe the core microbiome in sheep, characterized using 16S rRNA gene sequencing, and to explore whether exposure to stressful husbandry conditions changed sheep hindgut microbiome composition. Sheep (n = 10) were divided in two groups: isolated group (individually separated for 3 h/day) and control group (housed in the home pen for the entire trial period). Sheep core microbiome was dominated by Firmicutes (43.6%), Bacteroidetes (30.38%), Proteobacteria (10.14%), and Verrucomicrobia (7.55%). Comparative results revealed few operational taxonomic units (OTUs) with significantly different relative abundance between groups. Chao1, abundance-based coverage estimator (ACE), and Fisher’s alpha indices did not show differences between groups. OTU-based Bray–Curtis distances between groups were not significant (p-value = 0.07). In conclusion, these results describing the core microbiome of sheep do not suggest a strong effect of stressful husbandry conditions on microbial composition.

Download Full-text

Gut Microbiome Biomarkers in Adolescent Obesity: a Regional Study

10.1101/745489 ◽

2019 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Xuefeng Gao ◽

Binbin Wu ◽

Yonglong Pan ◽

Shaoming Zhou ◽

Ming Zhang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Signaling Pathway ◽

Gut Microbiome ◽

Blood Pressure Measurement ◽

Rrna Gene ◽

Case Control Studies ◽

Regional Study ◽

Microbial Composition ◽

Bacterial Gene ◽

Fecal Microbiome ◽

Microbiome Composition

ABSTRACTPurposeThis study aimed to characterize the gut microbiota in obese Shenzhen adolescents, and evaluate the influence of gender on BMI-related differences in the gut microbiome.MethodsPhysical examinations, blood pressure measurement, serological assay, and body composition evaluation were conducted on two-hundred and five adolescents from Shenzhen. Fecal microbiome composition was profiled via 16S rRNA gene sequencing. A Random Forest (RF) classifier model was built to distinguish the BMI categories based on the gut bacterial composition.ResultsFifty-six taxa consisting mainly of Firmicutes were identified that having significant associations with BMI; two OTUs belonging to Ruminococcaceae and one belonging to Lachnospiraceae had relatively strong positive correlations with body fate rate, waistline, and most of serum biochemical parameters. Based on the 56 BMI-associated OTUs, the RF model showed a robust classification accuracy (AUC 0.96) for predicting the obese phenotype. Gender-specific differences in the gut microbiome composition was obtained, and a lower relative abundance of Odoribacter was particularly found in obese boys. Functional analysis revealed a deficiency in bacterial gene contents related to PPAR signaling pathway in obese subjects for both genders; significantly lower levels of adipocytokine signaling pathway and ethylbenzene degradation were particularly detected in obese girls.ConclusionsThis study revealed unique features of gut microbiome in terms of microbial composition and metabolic functions in obese Shenzhen adolescents. The effect of geographical location, age and gender on the gut microbiome should be carefully considered in case–control studies.

Download Full-text

Altered Fecal Microbiome and Metabolome in a Mouse Model of Choroidal Neovascularization

Frontiers in Microbiology ◽

10.3389/fmicb.2021.738796 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 ◽

Author(s):

Yun Li ◽

Yuting Cai ◽

Qian Huang ◽

Wei Tan ◽

Bingyan Li ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mouse Model ◽

Gut Microbiota ◽

Choroidal Neovascularization ◽

16S Rrna Gene Sequencing ◽

Age Related Macular Degeneration ◽

Rrna Gene ◽

Microbial Composition ◽

Fecal Microbiome ◽

Age Related ◽

Rrna Gene Sequencing

PurposeChoroidal neovascularization (CNV) is the defining feature of neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD). Gut microbiota might be deeply involved in the pathogenesis of nAMD. This study aimed to reveal the roles of the gut microbiome and fecal metabolome in a mouse model of laser-induced CNV.MethodsThe feces of C57BL/6J mice with or without laser-induced CNV were collected. Multi-omics analyses, including 16S rRNA gene sequencing and untargeted metabolomics, were conducted to analyze the changes in the gut microbial composition and the fecal metabolomic profiles in CNV mice.ResultsThe gut microbiota was significantly altered in CNV mice. The abundance of Candidatus_Saccharimonas was significantly upregulated in the feces of CNV mice, while 16 genera, including Prevotellaceae_NK3B31_group, Candidatus_Soleaferrea, and Truepera, were significantly more abundant in the controls than in the CNV group. Fecal metabolomics identified 73 altered metabolites (including 52 strongly significantly altered metabolites) in CNV mice compared to control mice. Correlation analysis indicated significant correlations between the altered fecal metabolites and gut microbiota genera, such as Lachnospiraceae_UCG-001 and Candidatus_Saccharimonas. Moreover, KEGG analysis revealed six pathways associated with these altered metabolites, such as the ABC transporter, primary bile acid biosynthesis and steroid hormone biosynthesis pathways.ConclusionThe study identified an altered fecal microbiome and metabolome in a CNV mouse model. The altered microbes, metabolites and the involved pathways might be associated with the pathogenesis of nAMD.

Download Full-text

Soybean Roots and Soil From High- and Low-Yielding Field Sites Have Different Microbiome Composition

Frontiers in Microbiology ◽

10.3389/fmicb.2021.675352 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 ◽

Author(s):

Ananda Y. Bandara ◽

Dilooshi K. Weerasooriya ◽

Ryan V. Trexler ◽

Terrence H. Bell ◽

Paul D. Esker

Keyword(s):

Network Analysis ◽

16S Rrna ◽

16S Rrna Gene ◽

High Throughput Sequencing ◽

Microbial Interactions ◽

Growth Stages ◽

Rrna Gene ◽

Plant Growth Promoting Bacteria ◽

Microbial Composition ◽

Site Type

The occurrence of high- (H) and low- (L) yielding field sites within a farm is a commonly observed phenomenon in soybean cultivation. Site topography, soil physical and chemical attributes, and soil/root-associated microbial composition can contribute to this phenomenon. In order to better understand the microbial dynamics associated with each site type (H/L), we collected bulk soil (BS), rhizosphere soil (RS), and soybean root (R) samples from historically high and low yield sites across eight Pennsylvania farms at V1 (first trifoliate) and R8 (maturity) soybean growth stages (SGS). We extracted DNA extracted from collected samples and performed high-throughput sequencing of PCR amplicons from both the fungal ITS and prokaryotic 16S rRNA gene regions. Sequences were then grouped into amplicon sequence variants (ASVs) and subjected to network analysis. Based on both ITS and 16S rRNA gene data, a greater network size and edges were observed for all sample types from H-sites compared to L-sites at both SGS. Network analysis suggested that the number of potential microbial interactions/associations were greater in samples from H-sites compared to L-sites. Diversity analyses indicated that site-type was not a main driver of alpha and beta diversity in soybean-associated microbial communities. L-sites contained a greater percentage of fungal phytopathogens (ex: Fusarium, Macrophomina, Septoria), while H-sites contained a greater percentage of mycoparasitic (ex: Trichoderma) and entomopathogenic (ex: Metarhizium) fungal genera. Furthermore, roots from H-sites possessed a greater percentage of Bradyrhizobium and genera known to contain plant growth promoting bacteria (ex: Flavobacterium, Duganella). Overall, our results revealed that there were differences in microbial composition in soil and roots from H- and L-sites across a variety of soybean farms. Based on our findings, we hypothesize that differences in microbial composition could have a causative relationship with observed within-farm variability in soybean yield.

Download Full-text