Caratterizzazione tassonomica e funzionale del microbiota intestinale di suini di razza Nero Siciliano mediante Shotgun Metagenome Sequencing.

The Pig’s gut microbiota represents one of the most important and complex microbial community in nature involved in numerous physiological processes of the host such as the development of the gastrointestinal system, uptake of feeding, release of active metabolites, stimulation and modulation of the immunity system and seems to be able to influence the animal performance. Nero Siciliano pig is an autochthonous pig breed reared in internal areas of Sicily island (Italy), in particular specifically in Madonie’s Park and Nebrodi’s Park. This breed shows wild phenotypic traits that differ from other commercial varieties bred in an intensive way. For this reason here we report for the first time a taxonomic and functional characterization of the intestinal microbiota of three fecal samples of Nero Siciliano pig, an autochthonous pig breed reared in the internal areas of Sicily island (Italy), using the shotgun metagenome sequencing. The taxonomic assignment analysis showed that the 99% of the sequences belong to Bacteria, followed by, Archaea (0,7%), Eukaryota (0,1%) e Viruses (0,04%). Firmicutes (79%) was the most abundant phylum in all samples analyzed, followed by Proteobacteria (6%), Actinobacteria (5%), Bacteroidetes (3%). Moreover, at genus level Lactobacillus was the dominant one in all samples, whereas Clostridium, Coprococcus, Faecalibacterium showed a different abundancy in our samples. A great number of Lactobacillus spp were identified, and Lactobacillus amylovorus represents the most abundant species in all samples. The functional prediction analysis annotated more than 231k protein involved mainly in biosynthesis of secondary metabolites and in different metabolic pathways. In conclusion this study reveals for the first time the microbial composition and biochemical functionality of the intestinal microbiota of Nero Sicilano pig, providing an huge quantity of informations for further comparative analysis with other pig breed that could help a better understanding the influence played by intestinal microbiota on animal performance and its possible effects on the well-being of this animal.