Longitudinal microbiome profiling reveals impermanence of probiotic bacteria in domestic pigeons

Abstract

Probiotics are bacterial species or assemblages that are applied to animals and plants with the intention of altering the microbiome in a beneficial way. Probiotics have been linked to positive health effects such as faster disease recovery times in humans and increased weight gain in poultry. Pigeon fanciers often feed their show pigeons probiotics with the intention of increasing flight performance. The objective of our study was to determine the effect of two different probiotics, alone and in combination, on the fecal microbiome of Birmingham Roller pigeons. We sequenced fecal samples from 20 pigeons divided into three probiotic treatments, including prior to, during, and after treatment. Pre-treatment and control group samples were dominated by Actinobacteria, Firmicutes, Proteobacteria, and Cyanobacteria. Administration of a probiotic pellet containing Enterococcus faecium and Lactobacillus acidophilus resulted in increase in average relative abundance of Lactobacillus spp. from 4.7 ± 2.0% to 93.0 ± 5.3%. No significant effects of Enterococcus spp. were detected. Probiotic-induced shifts in the microbiome composition were temporary and disappeared within 2 days of probiotic cessation. Administration of a probiotic powder in drinking water that contained Enterococcus faecium and three Lactobacillus species had minimal effect on the microbiome. We conclude that supplementing Birmingham roller pigeons with the probiotic pellets, but not the probiotic powder, temporarily changed the microbiome composition. A next step is to experimentally test the effect of these changes in microbiome composition on host health and physical performance.

Evolutionary signal in the gut microbiomes of 74 bird species from Equatorial Guinea

“…Catellicoccus were first described in 2006 following isolation from decomposing sea mammals (Lawson, Collins, Falsen, & Foster, ) and have subsequently been discovered to be a significant member of the gull faecal microbiome (Koskey, Fisher, Traudt, Newton, & McLellan, ; Lu, Santo Domingo, Lamendella, Edge, & Hill, ). Enterococcus , Staphylococcus , Lactobacillus , Enterobacter , Clostridium and Lactococcus were detected in at least one quarter of the samples and are all common gut microbes in birds (e.g., Grond, Perreau, et al, ; Liu et al, ; van Dongen et al, ; Waite & Taylor, ).…”

“…and Lactococcus were detected in at least one quarter of the samples and are all common gut microbes in birds (e.g., Grond, Perreau, et al, 2019;Liu et al, 2019;van Dongen et al, 2013;Waite & Taylor, 2014).…”

Corynebacterium glutamicum Mechanosensing: From Osmoregulation to L-Glutamate Secretion for the Avian Microbiota-Gut-Brain Axis

“…Recent probiotics studies with pigeons revealed that pigeon milk microbiota, transmitted from parent pigeons to squabs, contain a considerable proportion of Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium, but not Corynebacterium [ 118 ]. However, the dramatic effects of probiotics on microbiome profiling were demonstrated in Birmingham Roller pigeons [ 119 ]. Birmingham Roller pigeons have been domesticated for pigeon fancying due to the ability to perform backwards somersaults during flight.…”

“…Interestingly, the pigeon gut microbiome is highly dependent on diet. When pigeons are fed only a diet of grain, actinobacteria is the most dominant phyla (more than 40% on average), and Corynebacterium is significantly abundant; however, when a probiotic diet was given, immediately a decrease in two genera ( Corynebacterium and Peptostreptococcus ) occurred, and the gut microbiome shifted towards a Firmicutes-dominated population, mainly by Lactobacillus, ranging from 71.8% to 99.9% in 14 days [ 119 ]. It was concluded that Corynebacterium and Peptostreptococcus are pathogens in the pigeon gut; therefore, reducing pathogen loads by probiotics helps the pigeon health.…”

Nutraceuticals as modulators of gut microbiota: Role in therapy

“…It has also been suggested, but not independently confirmed, that probiotic–microbiota interactions could impair microbiota reconstitution following its depletion by an antibiotic (Suez, Zmora et al, ). All would agree that a probiotic will disappear from the gastrointestinal tract soon after its administration has ceased (Grond et al, ).…”