The Bovine Foot Skin Microbiota is Associated with Host Genotype and the Development of Infectious Digital Dermatitis Lesions

Abstract

Bovine Digital Dermatitis (BDD) is a prevalent infectious disease, causing painful foot skin lesions and lameness in cattle. The polymicrobial nature of this disease has led to the hypothesis that the foot skin microbiota may be associated with occurrence and progression of lesions. We describe herein the bovine foot skin microbiota using 16S rRNA gene amplicon and shotgun metagenomic sequencing on samples from 259 dairy cows from three UK dairy farms. We show differences in the foot skin microbiome profiles of clinically healthy animals that were associated with subsequent development of BDD. We also present the first co-occurrence analysis of the bovine foot skin microbiome showing ecological relationships among bacterial species. Taxonomical and functional differences together with alterations in ecological interactions between bacteria in the normal foot skin microbiome may predispose an animal to develop BDD lesions. Using genome-wide association and regional heritability mapping approaches, we provide first evidence for interactions between host genotype and the foot skin microbiota profiles. We show the existence of genetic variation in the relative abundance of Treponema spp. and Peptoclostridium spp. and identify regions in the bovine genome that explain a significant proportion of this variation.

Unveiling Genetic Signatures Associated with Resilience to Neonatal Diarrhea in Lambs Through Dual GWAS Approaches

“…Addressing these challenges requires a multifaceted approach that considers the complex nature of neonatal diarrhea and the need for innovative solutions to mitigate economic losses and ensure animal and public health. While genome-wide association studies have made signi cant strides in uncovering genetic factors related to nonspeci c resistance or susceptibility to multifactorial infectious diseases caused by various pathogens like mastitis 23,24,25 , metritis 26,27 , and digital dermatitis 28,29 , the molecular-level exploration of genetic resistance or susceptibility to neonatal diarrhea in farm animals remains conspicuously absent in the literature. To date, no study has delved into this aspect, leaving a signi cant gap in our understanding of neonatal diarrhea in farm animals.…”