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Characterization of fungal communities transmitted from sow to piglet

Summary

This study examines how fungal communities pass from mother pigs to their newborns. Researchers collected samples from sow feces, sow vagina, and newborn piglet feces and analyzed their fungal composition. The findings show that newborn piglets acquire most of their gut fungi from their mother’s intestinal tract rather than her vagina. Understanding this transmission helps us learn how the healthy microbiota that protects young animals develops.

Background

The gut microbiota of newborn piglets is closely related to their sows, but research has primarily focused on bacteria rather than fungi. Understanding fungal community composition during early life is critical for immune development and environmental adaptation in neonatal piglets.

Objective

To characterize and compare gut fungal communities in sow feces, sow vagina, and newborn piglet feces, and to determine the origin and transmission patterns of fungal communities from mother to offspring using ITS1 rRNA gene sequencing.

Results

Sow feces showed the greatest fungal diversity, followed by piglet feces, with the least diversity in sow vagina. FEAST analysis revealed 47.1% of piglet fecal fungi originated from sow feces and 4.2% from sow vagina. Six core fungal genera and species were identified as potentially transmitted from sows to piglets.

Conclusion

This study demonstrates significant differences in fungal communities among maternal feces, maternal vagina, and piglet feces, with vertical transmission primarily from maternal intestinal rather than vaginal sources. Core dominant fungi show potential transmission patterns important for understanding early-life microbiota establishment.
  • Published in:Microbiology Spectrum,
  • Study Type:Observational Study,
  • Source: PMID: 40853134, DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.02078-24
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