A comparison of wild boar and domestic pig microbiota does not reveal a loss of microbial species but an increase in alpha diversity and opportunistic genera in domestic pigs.

ABSTRACT: The microbiome of wild animals is believed to be co-evolved with host species, which may play an important role in host physiology. It has been hypothesized that the rigorous hygienic practices in combination with antibiotics and diets with simplified formulas used in the modern swine industry may negatively affect the establishment and development of the gut microbiome. In this study, we evaluated the fecal microbiome of 90 domestic pigs sampled from nine farms in Canada and 39 wild pigs sampled from three different locations on two continents (North America and Europe) using 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing. Surprisingly, the gut microbiome in domestic pigs exhibited higher alpha-diversity indices than wild pigs (P < 0.0001). The wild pig microbiome showed a lower Firmicutes-to-B

SUBMITTER: Rahman R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11448168 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature