Real-time PCR detection of the effects of protozoa on rumen bacteria in cattle

A real-time PCR approach was used in this study to clarify the populations of major bacterial species in the rumens of faunated and unfaunated cattle. The sensitivity of this novel real-time PCR assay was evaluated by using 10(1) to 10(8) plasmid copies of target bacteria. The numbers of plasmid copies of Ruminococcus albus, Ruminococcus flavefaciens, Prevotella ruminicola, and the CUR-E cluster were higher in the unfaunated than in the faunated rumens. The CUR-E cluster belongs to the Clostridium group. In contrast, Fibrobacter succinogenes was higher in the faunated than in the unfaunated rumens. Although it is well known that an absence of protozoa brings about an increase in the bacterial population, it was clarified here that an absence of protozoa exerted differential effects on the populations of cellulolytic bacteria in cattle rumens (i.e., F. succinogenes, R. albus, and R. flavefaciens). In addition, real-time PCR analysis suggested that the CUR-E cluster was more prevalent in the unfaunated rumens.