Project description:Protozoa comprise a major fraction of the microbial biomass in the rumen microbiome, of which the genera Entodinium has been consistently observed to be dominant across a diverse genetic and geographical range of ruminant hosts. Despite the apparent core role that species such as Entodinium caudatum exert, their greater biological and metabolic contributions to rumen function remain largely undescribed. Here, we have leveraged (meta)genome-centric metaproteome datasets from rumen fluid samples originating from both cows and goats fed contrasting diets, to detail the specific metabolic niches that E. caudatum occupies in the context of its bacterial and archaeal co-habitants. Initial proteome estimations via total protein counts and label free quantification highlight that E. caudatum populations comprise an extensive fraction of the total rumen metaproteome. Our analysis also suggested increased microbial predation and volatile fatty acid metabolism by E. caudatum to occur in high methane emitting animals, although with no apparent direct metabolic link to methanogenesis. Despite E. caudatum having a well-established reputation of digesting starch, it was unexpectedly less active in low methane emitting animals fed high starch diets, which were instead dominated by propionate/succinate-producing bacterial populations suspected of being resistant to predation. Collectively, our results illuminate the substantial metabolic influence under-explored eukaryotic populations have in the rumen, with greater implications towards both digestion and methane metabolism.
Project description:Protozoa comprise a major fraction of the microbial biomass in the rumen microbiome, of which the genera Entodinium has been consistently observed to be dominant across a diverse genetic and geographical range of ruminant hosts. Despite the apparent core role that species such as Entodinium caudatum exert, their greater biological and metabolic contributions to rumen function remain largely undescribed. Here, we have leveraged (meta)genome-centric metaproteome datasets from rumen fluid samples originating from both cows and goats fed contrasting diets, to detail the specific metabolic niches that E. caudatum occupies in the context of its bacterial and archaeal co-habitants. Initial proteome estimations via total protein counts and label free quantification highlight that E. caudatum populations comprise an extensive fraction of the total rumen metaproteome. Our analysis also suggested increased microbial predation and volatile fatty acid metabolism by E. caudatum to occur in high methane emitting animals, although with no apparent direct metabolic link to methanogenesis. Despite E. caudatum having a well-established reputation of digesting starch, it was unexpectedly less active in low methane emitting animals fed high starch diets, which were instead dominated by propionate/succinate-producing bacterial populations suspected of being resistant to predation. Collectively, our results illuminate the substantial metabolic influence under-explored eukaryotic populations have in the rumen, with greater implications towards both digestion and methane metabolism.
Project description:The objective of our study was to assess the effect of rumen-protected niacin supplementation on the overall transcriptomics profile of liver tissue on growing Angus × Simmental steers and heifers. Consequently, the vasodilatory, detoxifying, and immune suppressor effects of niacin were evaluated in hepatocytes. After a 30-day supplementation period with rumen-protected niacin on normal weaned beef calves, we observed a significant list of benefits at the liver transcriptome level. Several metabolic pathways revealed positive effects of administration of rumen-protected niacin; for example, a decrease in lipolysis, apoptosis, inflammatory responses, atherosclerosis, oxidative stress, fibrosis, and vasodilation-related pathways. Therefore, results from this study could potentially promote supplementation of rumen-protected niacin on beef cattle backgrounding operations or new arrivals to a feedlot, especially during the acclimation period when the health status of growing beef cattle is usually compromised.