Dietary Supplementation of ε-Polylysine Beneficially Affects Ileal Microbiota Structure and Function in Ningxiang Pigs

Abstract

Intestinal microbiota plays an important role in the health of animals. However, little is known about the gut microbiota in Ningxiang pigs. Thus, we investigated how dietary supplementation with different ε-polylysine concentrations (0, 20, 40, 80, and 160 ppm) affected the ileal microbiota in Ningxiang pigs using a replicated 5 × 5 Latin square method. Each experimental period included 10 days for diet adaptation, 3 days for feces collection and 2 days for digesta collection. The ileal contents were collected and used for sequencing of the V3–V4 hypervariable region of the 16S rRNA gene. The results revealed that ε-polylysine significantly decreased the digestibility of crude protein and crude fiber, as well as the utilization of metabolizable energy ( P < 0.05). The relative abundances of 19 bacterial genera significantly increased, while those of 26 genera significantly decreased ( P < 0.05). In addition, ε-polylysine increased the abundance of some bacteria (e.g., Faecalibacterium , Bifidobacterium , and lactic acid bacteria) and inhibited some other bacteria (e.g., Micrococcaceae , Acinetobacter , Anaerococcus , Peptoniphilus , Dehalobacterium , Finegoldia , Treponema , and Brevundimonas ). Furthermore, based on the 16S rRNA gene data and data from the precalculated GreenGenes database, bacterial communities in the ileal contents exhibited enhanced functional maturation, including changes in the metabolism of carbohydrates, amino acids (e.g., alanine, lysine, tryptophan, cysteine, and methionine), cofactors, and vitamins (e.g., biotin, thiamine, and folate), as well as in the activity of the insulin signaling pathway. This study suggests that ε-polylysine may influence the utilization of feed nutrients by Ningxiang pigs, including proteins, lipids, metabolizable energy, and fiber, by regulating the gut microbiota.

Supplementation of oligosaccharide-based polymer enhanced growth and disease resistance of weaned pigs by modulating intestinal integrity and systemic immunity

“…Thus, the blood group A antigen in Coligo may affect the composition and function of microbial communities when fed to pigs. Moreover, recent studies demonstrated that dietary supplementation of ε-PL altered ileal microbiota structure and function in pigs [ 58 ] and fecal microbial community in mice [ 59 ]. ε-PL supplementation may promote the growth of beneficial microorganisms in the intestinal tract, therefore, reducing the proliferation of pathogens.…”

Epsilon-poly-L-lysine: Recent Advances in Biomanufacturing and Applications

“…The lipid-lowering effects and structural stability of ε-PL can be further improved by formation of a complex between cationic ε-PL and anionic pectin through electrostatic interactions ( Song et al, 2017 ). Very recent research has shown that ε-PL could affect nutrient utilization (i.e., proteins, lipids, and fiber) by regulation of the gut microbiota in Ningxiang pigs ( Zhang et al, 2020 ).…”

Metatranscriptomic analysis of functional response of colonic microbiota to different dietary fibers in growing pigs

“…Signi cant (fold change >2 or < 0.5; FDR < 0.05) increase was detected in Parabacteroides, Ruminococcus, Faecalibacterium and Alloprevotella in the RPS group, while a concurrent reduction was observed in Sutterella. The increase in Faecalibacterium can be associated with augmented RPS consumption [18] and its abundance is negatively correlated with crude protein digestibility (p < 0.05) [19]. In addition, a previous study showed that Sutterella increased substantially in the ceca of mice fed with raw potato starch [20].…”