Early life microbiota transplantation from highly feed-efficient broiler improved weight gain by reshaping the gut microbiota in laying chicken

Abstract

Starting phase of laying chicken life is the building stone for rearing and production stages. Since, fecal microbial transplantation (FMT) regulates the gut microbial diversity and affects the productive performance of the bird. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of FMT from feed-efficient broiler chicken could program the diversity of gut microbiota and growth of recipient native slow growing egg-laying chicks. For this, a total of 150 (one-day-old) Jing Hong chicks were randomly assigned into two groups, each group consisted of 5 replicates (n = 15 bird/ replicate). The control group (CON) and FMT recipient birds (FMT) fed on basal diet, the FMT group received an oral daily dose of FMT prepared from Cobb-500 chickens. The FMT performed from the 1d to 28d of age, through the experimental period, feed intake and body weight were recorded weekly. At the end of a 28-day trial, carcass traits were assessed and cecal samples were collected for microbiome assessment via 16S rRNA-based metagenomic analysis to characterize the diversity and functions of microbial communities. The data were statistically analyzed using R software. Body weight and body weight gain increased, and FCR decreased (p = 0.01) in FMT group. The relative abundance of Firmicutes and the Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes (F/B) ratio were increased due to FMT administration (p = 0.01). A higher relative abundance of Lactobacillus, Lactococcus, and Bifidobacterium were presented in the FMT group. Meanwhile, Enterococcus, Helicobacter, and Bacteroides were more abundant in the CON group (p < 0.01). Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG) pathways for microbial functions regarding amino acid metabolism, secondary metabolites biosynthesis, carbohydrate metabolism, energy metabolism, and enzyme families, cofactors, and vitamins were significantly annotated in the FMT group. Overall, FMT administration from the donor of highly feed-efficient broilers improved weight gain by reshaping a distinct gut microbiome, which may be related to the metabolism and health in the recipients laying chicks, providing new insight on the application of the FMT technique for early life programming of laying chickens.

The impacts of animal agriculture on One Health—Bacterial zoonosis, antimicrobial resistance, and beyond

“…FMT has recently been investigated in animal agriculture as well, particularly in poultry. Recent studies have found that FMT improved weight gain and overall health of broiler chickens by reshaping the gut microbiota composition; specifically protected chicks from Salmonella enteritidis infection; and improved egg-laying performance in broiler breeders [ [146] , [147] , [148] ]. Besides FMT, probiotics can also be used to alter the microbiome and thus prevent or eradicate infection.…”

Reduced metabolic capacity of the gut microbiota associates with host growth in broiler chickens

“…2a). Such a variety of functional attributes within major bacterial clades ags the risk of oversimplifying bacterial functional complexity when analysing gut microbiota features in terms of phylum-level ratios, as commonly done with the Firmicutes/Bacteroidota ratio 36,37 .…”

Fecal virus transplantation has more moderate effect than fecal microbiota transplantation on changing gut microbial structure in broiler chickens

“…Several studies have confirmed that. For example, Elokil et al (2022) demonstrated that transplanting gut microorganisms from high-feed efficiency broiler to laying hens specifically altered the community composition and functional characteristics of the cecum. Meanwhile, Wang et al (2022) pointed out that transfer the microbes of 208-day-old SPF adult chickens to newly hatched chickens reduced the negative impact and counteracted the lethal effect of Salmonella infection.…”