AUTHOR=Liu Zhigang , Yin Baishuang 

TITLE=Alterations in the Gut Microbial Composition and Diversity of Tibetan Sheep Infected With Echinococcus granulosus

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Veterinary Science

VOLUME=8

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/veterinary-science/articles/10.3389/fvets.2021.778789

DOI=10.3389/fvets.2021.778789

ISSN=2297-1769

ABSTRACT=<p>Hydatidosis/cystic echinococcosis (CE) caused by <italic>Echinococcus granulosus</italic> is a parasitic zoonotic disease worldwide, threatening animal health and production and public health safety. However, it is still unclear that whether <italic>E. granulosus</italic> infection can result in the alteration of gut microbiota in Tibetan sheep. Therefore, a study was designed to investigate the influences of <italic>E. granulosus</italic> infection on gut microbiota of Tibetan sheep. A total of 10 ovine small intestinal contents (five from healthy and five from infected) were obtained and subjected to high-throughput sequencing by MiSeq platform. A total of 2,395,641 sequences and 585 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were identified. <italic>Firmicutes</italic> and <italic>Proteobacteria</italic> were the most dominant phyla in all samples. Moreover, the proportions of <italic>Armatimonadetes</italic> and <italic>Firmicutes</italic> in the infected Tibetan sheep were significantly decreased, whereas <italic>Actinobacteria, Chloroflexi</italic>, and <italic>Acidobacteria</italic> had significantly increased. At the genus level, the <italic>Christensenellaceae_</italic>R-7_group and <italic>Ruminococcaceae_</italic>NK4A214_group were the predominant bacterial genera in all the samples. Furthermore, the healthy Tibetan sheep exhibited higher abundances of <italic>Intestinimonas, Butyrivibrio, Pseudobutyrivibrio, Ruminococcaceae, Eubacterium_coprostanoligenes_</italic>group, <italic>Oxobacter, Prevotella_1, Ruminiclostridium_6, Coprococcus_1, Ruminococcus, Lachnospiraceae_UCG-002, Olsenella</italic>, and <italic>Acetitomaculum</italic>, whereas <italic>Kocuria, Clostridium_sensu_stricto_1, Slackia, Achromobacter</italic>, and <italic>Stenotrophomonas</italic> levels were lower. In conclusion, our results conveyed an information that <italic>E. granulosus</italic> infection may cause an increase in pathogenic bacteria and a decrease in beneficial bacteria. Additionally, a significant dynamical change in gut microbiota could be associated with <italic>E. granulosus</italic> infection.</p>