Uncovering the biogeography of the microbial commmunity and its association with nutrient metabolism in the intestinal tract using a pig model

Yuanyuan Song; Kai Chen; Lu Lv; Yun Xiang; Xizhong Du; Xiaojun Zhang; Guangmin Zhao; Yingping Xiao

doi:10.3389/fnut.2022.1003763

Uncovering the biogeography of the microbial commmunity and its association with nutrient metabolism in the intestinal tract using a pig model

Front Nutr. 2022 Sep 26:9:1003763. doi: 10.3389/fnut.2022.1003763. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Yuanyuan Song^{1

2}, Kai Chen³, Lu Lv¹, Yun Xiang⁴, Xizhong Du⁴, Xiaojun Zhang⁴, Guangmin Zhao¹, Yingping Xiao¹

Affiliations

¹ State Key Laboratory for Managing Biotic and Chemical Threats to the Quality and Safety of Agro-products, Institute of Agro-product Safety and Nutrition, Zhejiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hangzhou, China.
² Key Laboratory of Vector Biology and Pathogen Control of Zhejiang Province, School of Life Sciences, Huzhou University, Huzhou, China.
³ Quality and Safety of Animal Products Group, Zhejiang Center of Animal Disease Control, Hangzhou, China.
⁴ Institute of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine, Jinhua Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Jinhua, China.

Abstract

The gut microbiota is a complex ecosystem that is essential for the metabolism, immunity and health of the host. The gut microbiota also plays a critical role in nutrient absorption and metabolism, and nutrients can influence the growth and composition of the gut microbiota. To gain a better understanding of the relationship between the gut microbial composition and nutrient metabolism, we used a pig model by collecting the contents of the different intestinal locations from six pigs to investigate microbial composition in different intestinal locations based on 16S rRNA gene sequencing and the concentrations of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), amino acids, fat, and crude ash in different intestinal locations using gas chromatography and chemical analysis. The results showed that the richness and diversity of intestinal microbial communities gradually increased from the small intestine to the large intestine. The relative abundance of Proteobacteria was higher in the jejunum and ileum, whereas the proportion of Firmicutes was higher in the cecum and colon. The concentrations of SCFAs were higher in the cecum and colon (P < 0.05). The concentrations of amino acids were higher in the small intestine than in the large intestine, while the amino acid content was significantly higher in the ascending colon than in the transverse colon and descending colon. The correlation analysis revealed that Ruminococcaceae UCG-005, Coriobacteriaceae_uncultured, [Eubacterium] hallii group, Mogibacterium and Lachnospiraceae AC2044 group had a higher positive correlation with SCFAs, crude ash and fat but had a negative correlation with amino acids in different gut locations of pigs. These findings may serve as fundamental data for using nutrient metabolism to regulate human and animal gut microbes and health and provide guidance for exploring host-microbe bidirectional interaction mechanisms and driving pathways.

Keywords: amino acid; gut microbiota; intestinal tract; nutrients; short-chain fatty acids.