Characterization of egg laying hen and broiler fecal microbiota in poultry farms in Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovenia

PLoS One. 2014 Oct 16;9(10):e110076. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0110076. eCollection 2014.

Abstract

Poultry meat is the most common protein source of animal origin for humans. However, intensive breeding of animals in confined spaces has led to poultry colonisation by microbiota with a zoonotic potential or encoding antibiotic resistances. In this study we were therefore interested in the prevalence of selected antibiotic resistance genes and microbiota composition in feces of egg laying hens and broilers originating from 4 different Central European countries determined by real-time PCR and 16S rRNA gene pyrosequencing, respectively. strA gene was present in 1 out of 10,000 bacteria. The prevalence of sul1, sul2 and tet(B) in poultry microbiota was approx. 6 times lower than that of the strA gene. tet(A) and cat were the least prevalent being present in around 3 out of 10,000,000 bacteria forming fecal microbiome. The core chicken fecal microbiota was formed by 26 different families. Rather unexpectedly, representatives of Desulfovibrionaceae and Campylobacteraceae, both capable of hydrogen utilisation in complex microbial communities, belonged among core microbiota families. Understanding the roles of individual population members in the total metabolism of the complex community may allow for interventions which might result in the replacement of Campylobacteraceae with Desulfovibrionaceae and a reduction of Campylobacter colonisation in broilers, carcasses, and consequently poultry meat products.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / pharmacology
  • Chickens / microbiology*
  • Chickens / physiology*
  • Croatia
  • Czech Republic
  • Drug Resistance, Bacterial / genetics
  • Feces / microbiology*
  • Female
  • Hungary
  • Microbiota*
  • Oviposition*
  • RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / genetics
  • Sequence Analysis, RNA
  • Slovenia

Substances

  • Anti-Bacterial Agents
  • RNA, Ribosomal, 16S

Grants and funding

This study was supported by PROMISE project 7th Framework Programme and AdmireVet project CZ.1.05/2.1.00/01.0006–ED0006/01/01 from the Czech Ministry of Education. A. Szmolka is holder of a Bolyai Janos Stipend from the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.