Microbiome composition as a potential predictor of longevity in rabbits

Area of Science:

• Animal Science
• Microbiology
• Genetics

Background:

• Longevity and resilience are crucial for sustainable livestock production, with resilient animals often exhibiting longer lifespans.
• The gut microbiome plays a vital role in regulating animal health and immune system development.
• Investigating the gut microbiome offers a potential avenue for enhancing longevity in rabbits.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine if distinct rabbit longevities correlate with different gut microbial profiles.
• To compare the gut microbiota of two rabbit maternal lines with varying longevity.
• To analyze the gut microbiota of rabbits within a specific line (LP) exhibiting contrasting longevities.

Main Methods:

• Sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene from soft feces of 95 does.
• Comparison of gut microbiota between a standard longevity line (A) and a longevity-selected line (LP).
• Analysis of gut microbiota in low-longevity (LLP) and high-longevity (HLP) rabbits within line LP.

Main Results:

• Significant differences in alpha and beta diversity were observed between lines A and LP.
• Partial Least Square Discriminant Analysis (PLS-DA) achieved high accuracy (>91% and >94%) in classifying rabbits based on line and longevity.
• Key microbial taxa, including Akkermansia and Christensenellaceae, were identified as discriminators and are linked to resilience and longevity.

Conclusions:

• Gut microbiome profiles at the first parity differ between rabbit maternal lines (A and LP) and, to a lesser extent, between rabbits of different longevities within line LP (LLP and HLP).
• Specific bacterial genera effectively differentiate between lines and longevity groups.
• The gut microbiome shows potential as a predictive factor for longevity and a selection criterion for enhancing these traits in rabbits.