title: Changes in Metabolically Active Bacterial Community during Rumen Development, and Their Alteration by Rhubarb Root Powder Revealed by 16S rRNA Amplicon Sequencing.
abstract: The objective of this present study was to explore the initial establishment of metabolically active bacteria and subsequent evolution in four fractions: rumen solid-phase (RS), liquid-phase (RL), protozoa-associated (RP), and epithelium-associated (RE) through early weaning and supplementing rhubarb root powder in 7 different age groups (1, 10, 20, 38, 41, 50, and 60 d) during rumen development. Results of the 16S rRNA sequencing based on RNA isolated from the four fractions revealed that the potentially active bacterial microbiota in four fractions were dominated by the phylaProteobacteria, Firmicutes, andBacteroidetesregardless of different ages. An age-dependent increment of Chao 1 richness was observed in the fractions of RL and RE. The principal coordinate analysis (PCoA) indicated that samples in four fractions all clustered based on different age groups, and the structure of the bacterial community in RE was distinct from those in other three fractions. The abundances ofProteobacteriadecreased significantly (P< 0.05) with age, while increases in the abundances ofFirmicutesandBacteroideteswere noted. At the genus level, the abundance of the predominant genusMannheimiain theProteobacteriaphylum decreased significantly (P< 0.05) after 1 d, while the generaQuinella, Prevotella, Fretibacterium, Ruminococcus, Lachnospiraceae NK3A20 group, andAtopobiumunderwent different manners of increases and dominated the bacterial microbiota across four fractions. Variations of the distributions of some specific bacterial genera across fractions were observed, and supplementation of rhubarb affected the relative abundance of various genera of bacteria.
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for Agro-Ecological Processes in Subtropical Region, Hunan Research Center of Livestock and Poultry Sciences, South-Central Experimental Station of Animal Nutrition and Feed Science in Ministry of Agriculture, Institute of Subtropical Agriculture, Chinese Academy of SciencesChangsha, China; University of Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijing, China; Lethbridge Research and Development Centre, Agriculture and Agri-Food CanadaLethbridge, AB, Canada.
authors.forename: Zuo
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Lethbridge Research and Development Centre, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Lethbridge, AB, Canada.
authors.forename: Chijioke
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Elekwachi
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for Agro-Ecological Processes in Subtropical Region, Hunan Research Center of Livestock and Poultry Sciences, South-Central Experimental Station of Animal Nutrition and Feed Science in Ministry of Agriculture, Institute of Subtropical Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Sciences Changsha, China.
authors.forename: Jinzhen
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Jiao
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for Agro-Ecological Processes in Subtropical Region, Hunan Research Center of Livestock and Poultry Sciences, South-Central Experimental Station of Animal Nutrition and Feed Science in Ministry of Agriculture, Institute of Subtropical Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Sciences Changsha, China.
authors.forename: Min
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for Agro-Ecological Processes in Subtropical Region, Hunan Research Center of Livestock and Poultry Sciences, South-Central Experimental Station of Animal Nutrition and Feed Science in Ministry of Agriculture, Institute of Subtropical Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Sciences Changsha, China.
authors.forename: Shaoxun
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tang
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for Agro-Ecological Processes in Subtropical Region, Hunan Research Center of Livestock and Poultry Sciences, South-Central Experimental Station of Animal Nutrition and Feed Science in Ministry of Agriculture, Institute of Subtropical Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Sciences Changsha, China.
authors.forename: Chuanshe
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for Agro-Ecological Processes in Subtropical Region, Hunan Research Center of Livestock and Poultry Sciences, South-Central Experimental Station of Animal Nutrition and Feed Science in Ministry of Agriculture, Institute of Subtropical Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Sciences Changsha, China.
authors.forename: Zhiliang
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Tan
authors.affiliation: Lethbridge Research and Development Centre, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Lethbridge, AB, Canada.
authors.forename: Robert J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Forster
keywords: bacterial colonization; black goats; early weaning; microbial ecology; microbial programming; rhubarb; rumen development