Abstract
The indigenous cattle are efficient in converting low quality feeds and forage into animal products. Kasaragod Dwarf cattle, a unique non-descriptive native cattle of Kerala, India, are noted for their unique qualities, such as low feed intake, thermotolerance, greater resistance to diseases and A2 allelic variant milk. However, owing to the higher milk yield, Holstein crossbred cattle are given more importance over Kasaragod Dwarf. The hindgut microbiota plays a major role in various biological processes such as the digestion, vitamins synthesis, and immunity in cattle. In this study, we compared the hindgut microbiota of the Kasaragod Dwarf with the highly found, Holstein crossbred utilizing 16S rRNA high-throughput sequencing for a better understanding of the relationship between the host and microbial community. Four replicates of each 20 samples comprising two cattle type (n=10) were sequenced and analyzed. Marker gene-based taxonomic analysis affirmed variations in their microbial composition. Principle Coordinate Analysis (PCoA) using weighted and unweighted UniFrac distance matrices showed the distinct microbial architecture of the two cattle type. Random Forest analysis further confirmed the distinctness and revealed the signature taxa in K-Dwarf. The study observed the predominance of feed efficiency associated genera viz., Anaerovibrio, Succinivibrio, Roseburia, Coprococcus, Anaerostipes, Paludibacter, Elusimicrobium, Sutterella, Oribacterium, Coprobacillus, and Ruminobacter in Kasaragod Dwarf cattle. The study highlights the abundance of unique and beneficial hindgut microflora found in Kasaragod Dwarf, which may attest its importance over exotic cattle breeds viz., Holstein. To our knowledge, this is the first report of Kasaragod Dwarf cattle gut microbiome profiling. This study is pivotal towards developing genetic resources for the microbial population in K-Dwarf and how it could be differentiated from Holstein crossbred cattle.