Title |
Impact of feeding regimens on the composition of gut microbiota and metabolite profiles of plasma and feces from Mongolian sheep |
Author |
Bohui Wang1,2, Yulong Luo1, Rina Su1, Duo Yao1, Yanru Hou1, Chang Liu1, Rui Du1, and Ye Jin1* |
Address |
1College of Food Science and Engineering, Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, Hohhot, 010018, P. R. China , 2Ordos City Food Inspection and Testing Center, Ordos, 017000, P. R. China |
Bibliography |
Journal of Microbiology, 58(6),472–482, 2020,
|
DOI |
10.1007/s12275-020-9501-0
|
Key Words |
feeding regimens, gut microbiota, metabolite, mongolian
sheep |
Abstract |
Mongolian sheep are an indigenous ruminant raised for
wool and meat production in China. The gut microbial community
plays an important role in animal performance and
metabolism. The objective of this study was to investigate
the effects of two feeding regimens on the diversity and composition
of gut microbiota and metabolite profiles of feces
and plasma from Mongolian sheep. A total of 20 Mongolian
sheep were assigned to one of two feeding regimens: free grazing
(FG) and barn confinement (BC). When samples were
collected, the average live weights of the sheep were 31.28 ±
1.56 kg and 34.18 ± 1.87 kg for the FG and BC groups,
respectively. At the genus level, the FG group showed higher
levels of Bacteroides, RC9_gut_group, Alistipes, Phocaeicola,
Barnesiella, and Oscillibacter, and lower levels of Succinivibrio,
Treponema, and Prevotella, compared to the BC group. The
butyric acid content in feces was lower in the FG group (P
< 0.05). Higher levels of palmitic acid, oleic acid, alpha-linolenic
acid, L-carnitine, L-citrulline, and L-histidine, and
lower levels of L-tyrosine, L-phenylalanine, and L-kynurenine
were found in the plasma of the FG sheep. Moreover, there
were substantial associations between several gut microbiota
genera and alterations in feces and plasma metabolites especially
those involved in the metabolism of butyric acid, linolenic
acid, and L-tyrosine. Feeding regimens can not only
influence the composition of gut microbiota, but also alter
metabolic homeostasis in sheep. |