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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Beltsville, Maryland (BARC) » Beltsville Agricultural Research Center » Animal Genomics and Improvement Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #414251
Research Project: Increasing Accuracy of Genomic Prediction, Developing Algorithms, Selecting Markers, and Evaluating New Traits to Improve Dairy Cattle

Location: Animal Genomics and Improvement Laboratory

Title: Effects of a direct-fed microbial inclusion on the gastrointestinal and environmental microbiomes of turkey toms

Author
item KENNEY, SOPHIA - Pennsylvania State University
item Miles, Asha
item ERB, LOGAN - Pennsylvania State University
item BONEY, JOHN - Pennsylvania State University
item GANDA, ERIKA - Pennsylvania State University

Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/22/2024
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Probiotic supplementation in poultry production has been increasingly explored for its potential health and growth promotion. Specifically, Bacillus subtilis-based direct-fed microbial (DFM) inclusions have been shown to promote weight gain, pathogen control, and beneficial changes to intestinal morphology. Given this, we sought to determine 1) the effects of a B. subtilis-based DFM on the ileal, cecal, and cloacal microbiomes of turkeys and 2) the impact of the DFM on their environmental microbiomes. Additionally, we evaluated if boot sock environmental sampling was representative of gastrointestinal microbiome changes. To this end, 720 Nicholas Select turkey toms (N=360/treatment) were reared on a conventional diet or a Bacillus subtilis-supplemented diet over a 19-week period. Samples were collected using cloacal, cecal, and ileal swabs on the last day of study as well as from the pens in which the birds were housed using boot sock covers. Following targeted sequencing of the V4 region of the 16s rRNA gene, microbial taxonomic assignment was performed. Between control and probiotic-supplemented groups, no significant differences in microbiome composition or diversity were observed. Significant differences in alpha diversity (p < 0.01) and beta diversity (PERMANOVA, p.adj = 0.006) were observed between sample types. Across all samples, Firmicutes, Bacteriodota, and Actinobacteriota were the most abundant phyla. In this study, the use of DFM supplementation did not significantly impact the host- or environmental-associated microbiomes. Observed microbiome composition is, however, impacted by the choice of sampling method, with boot sock environmental sampling being non-representative of microbiome changes within the gastrointestinal tract.