Metagenomic profiles of the rumen microbiota during the transition period in low‐yield and high‐yield dairy cows

Abstract

We investigated potential relationships between rumen microbiota and milk production in dairy cows during the transition period. Twelve dairy cows were divided into a low‐yield (LY) or high‐yield (HY) group based on their milk yield. Rumen samples were taken from dairy cows at 3 weeks before parturition, and at 4, 8, and 12 weeks after parturition. 16S rDNA‐based metagenomic analysis showed that diversities of rumen microbiota in both groups were similar and the number of operational taxonomic units (OTUs) was lower in the postpartum than prepartum period in both groups. The abundance of Bacteroidetes and ratio of Bacteroidetes:Firmicutes was higher in the HY than the LY group. OTUs assigned to Prevotella bryantii, Fibrobacter succinogenes, Ruminococcus albus, Butyrivibrio fibrisolvens, and Succinivibrio sp. were abundant in the HY group. These OTUs were significantly related to the propionate molar proportion of rumen fluids in the HY group. OTUs assigned to Lachnospiraceae, Bifidobacterium sp. and Saccharofermentans were dominant in the LY group. Predictive functional profiling revealed that abundance of gene families involved in amino acid and vitamin metabolism was higher in the HY than the LY group. These results suggest that the community structure and fermentation products of rumen microbiota could be associated with milk production of dairy cows.

Correlation of Breed, Growth Performance, and Rumen Microbiota in Two Rustic Cattle Breeds Reared Under Different Conditions

“…Two bacterial taxa (i.e., Lachnospiraceae NK3A20 group—family Lachnospiraceae and Saccharofermentans —family Ruminococcaceae) were negatively correlated with growth performance in MA steers. This result is consistent with the observation of another study in which microorganisms assigned to the family Lachnospiraceae and to the genus Saccharofermentans were dominant in the rumen of dairy cows with low milk yields ( Sofyan et al, 2019 ). Despite the fact that Saccharofermentans and Lachnospiraceae spp.…”

Nutrient Digestibility, Microbial Fermentation, and Response in Bacterial Composition to Methionine Dipeptide: An In Vitro Study

“…Higher relative abundance of Anaerotruncus and Treponema, two potential cellulolytic bacteria [ 57 , 58 , 59 ], were observed in the MD group. In addition to the above genera, the relative abundance of Succinivibrio in the rumen has been reported to be positively associated with feed efficiency in beef cattle [ 60 ], and with milk production [ 61 ] and milk protein yield [ 62 ] in dairy cows due to its ability of produce succinate, the precursor of glucose. Although our results showed that MD contributed to a higher relative abundance of Succinivibrio in in vitro study, further animal studies are required to confirm whether MD plays a role in milk production or feed efficiency.…”

The Response of Fecal Microbiota and Host Metabolome in Dairy Cows Following Rumen Fluid Transplantation

“…The gastrointestinal tract microbiota of cows plays a vital role in the forage and other plant materials digestion, volatile fatty acid, and microbial crude protein production ( McCann et al, 2014 ). Additionally, previous studies have suggested that the gastrointestinal tract microbiota was associated with cows’ health ( Mao et al, 2012 ; Plaizier et al, 2017 ) and productivity traits, such as feed intake ( Li et al, 2020 ; Huang et al, 2021 ), milk production efficiency ( Shabat et al, 2016 ; Weimer et al, 2017 ), milk yield ( Indugu et al, 2017 ; Sofyan et al, 2019 ), and milk composition ( Xue et al, 2020 ; Wu et al, 2021 ). Therefore, the transition period is a major challenge for cows’ productivity and health, farm profitability, and animal welfare.…”