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CHRONIC ZINC DEFICIENCY ALTERS CHICK ( Gallus gallus ) GUT MICROBIOTA STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION
Author(s) -
Tako Elad,
Koren Omry
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.30.1_supplement.148.3
Subject(s) - biology , species richness , unifrac , metagenomics , microbiome , gut flora , zinc deficiency (plant disorder) , zinc , micronutrient , zoology , beta diversity , microbiology and biotechnology , ecology , nutrient , bacteria , biochemistry , 16s ribosomal rna , genetics , chemistry , gene , organic chemistry
INTODUCTION Zinc (Zn)‐deficiency is a highly prevalent micronutrient insufficiency primarily caused by a lack of adequate dietary‐Zn and/or poorly bioavailable dietary‐Zn. Although the gut is a vital organ for Zn‐utilization, and therapeutic Zn‐administration positively influences gut health, the significance of the gut microbial ecology to the host during Zn‐deficiency has yet to be studied. Objectives Characterization of distinct bacterial shifts induced by chronic dietary Zn‐depletion. METHODS/DESIGN Cecal samples from Zn‐replete (42μg/g‐dietary‐Zn) and Zn‐deficient (2.5μg/g‐dietary‐Zn) treatment groups (Gallus‐gallus, n=14, 4‐weeks) were harvested for bacterial DNA‐extraction and sequenced using bar‐coding of the 16S‐rRNA gene V4 hypervariable region. The diversity of microbiota was assessed through measures of β‐diversity, α‐diversity, and overall species‐richness. Chao1‐index and observed species‐richness were used to assess α‐diversity. We utilized weighted‐UniFrac distances as a measure of β‐diversity to assess the effect of chronic Zn‐deficiency on between‐individual variation in bacterial community composition. RESULTS Zn‐depletion induces significant taxonomic shifts and decreases overall species‐richness and diversity, establishing a microbial profile resembling that of various other pathological states. Metagenomic‐analysis showed that predicted KEGG‐pathways responsible for macro‐and micro‐nutrient uptake are significantly depleted in Zn‐deficiency, and, along with decreases in beneficial short‐chain‐fatty‐acids, such depletions induce notable functional and metabolic alterations which may further preclude an optimal host Zn‐status. We identified four bacterial species; Enterococcus‐sp., Ruminococcuslactaris, Clostridium‐lactatifermentans, and Clostridium‐clostridioforme –positively correlated with zinc‐adequacy, and two bacterial species; Clostridium‐indolis and Unclassified‐S24‐7 – positively correlated with Zn‐insufficiency as candidate microbes which may play a significant role in the utilization of dietary Zn during a prolonged deficiency. CONCLUSIONS Our results characterize a unique cecal‐microbiota during Zn‐deficiency, and provide evidence for these perturbations as influencers of the Zn‐deficient phenotype. With additional research, such microbial alterations could be used to designate a Zn‐deficiency profile, which could be used as an additional physiological biomarker to establish and quantify deficiency stage and risk.