Butyrate-producing bacteria, including mucin degraders, from the swine intestinal tract

Abstract

To identify bacteria with potential for influencing gut health, 980 anaerobes were cultured from the swine intestinal tract and analyzed for butyrate production. Fifteen isolates in the order Clostridiales produced butyrate and had butyryl coenzyme A (CoA):acetate CoA transferase activity. Three of the isolates grew on mucin, suggesting an intimate association with host intestinal mucosa.

Fig 1

Maximum-likelihood phylogenetic tree of 16S rRNA gene sequences (1,231 bp) of swine butyrate producers (in bold), closely related cultured relatives, and select reference sequences, with superscript T denoting type strains. Clostridial clusters are labeled to the right of the tree. Stars indicates isolates that can degrade mucin. The tree is rooted with the Prevotella brevis GA33 16S rRNA sequence. Numbers by the nodes of the tree indicate the percentage bootstrap values of 1,000 resamplings and are noted only if the percentage was greater than 50%. The scale bar represents 10% sequence divergence.