Q: Is getting in-shape important for my lifestyle? A: Hey! 'Round' is a shape!
PLoS One. 2016 Dec 9;11(12):e0167108. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0167108. eCollection 2016.
Intense Exercise and Aerobic Conditioning Associated with Chromium or L-Carnitine Supplementation Modified the Fecal Microbiota of Fillies.
Almeida ML1,
Feringer WH Júnior2,
Carvalho JR2,
Rodrigues IM2,
Jordão LR3,
Fonseca MG3,
Carneiro de Rezende AS3,
de Queiroz Neto A2,
Weese JS4,
Costa MC4,
Lemos EG1,
Ferraz GC2.
- 1Department
of Technology, Faculdades de Ciências Agrárias e Veterinárias, UNESP
Univ Estadual Paulista, Laboratório de Bioquímica de Microrganismos e
Plantas, Jaboticabal, São Paulo, Brazil.
- 2Department
of Animal Morphology and Physiology, Faculdades de Ciências Agrárias e
Veterinárias, UNESP Univ Estadual Paulista, Laboratório de Farmacologia e
Fisiologia do Exercício Equino (LAFEQ), Jaboticabal, São Paulo, Brazil.
- 3Department
of Animal Sciences, Escola de Veterinária, Universidade Federal de
Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil.
- 4Department of Pathobiology, Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph, Ontario, Canada.
Abstract
Recent studies performed in humans and rats have reported that exercise can alter the intestinal microbiota. Athletic horses perform intense exercise
regularly, but studies characterizing horse microbiome during aerobic
conditioning programs are still limited. Evidence has indicated that
this microbial community is involved in the metabolic homeostasis of the
host. Research on ergogenic substances using new sequencing
technologies have been limited to the intestinal microbiota and there is
a considerable demand for scientific studies that verify the
effectiveness of these supplements in horses. L-carnitine and chromium are potentially ergogenic substances for athletic humans and horses
since they are possibly able to modify the metabolism of carbohydrates
and lipids. This study aimed to assess the impact of acute exercise
and aerobic conditioning, associated either with L-carnitine or
chromium supplementation, on the intestinal microbiota of fillies.
Twelve "Mangalarga Marchador" fillies in the incipient fitness stage
were distributed into four groups: control (no exercise), exercise, L-carnitine (10g/day) and chelated chromium (10mg/day). In order to investigate the impact of acute exercise
or aerobic conditioning on fecal microbiota all fillies undergoing the
conditioning program were analyzed as a separate treatment. The fillies
underwent two incremental exercise
tests before and after training on a treadmill for 42 days at 70-80% of
the lactate threshold intensity. Fecal samples were obtained before and
48 h after acute exercise (incremental exercise
test). Bacterial populations were characterized by sequencing the V4
region of the 16S rRNA gene using the MiSeq Illumina platform, and
5,224,389 sequences were obtained from 48 samples. The results showed
that, overall, the two most abundant phyla were Firmicutes (50.22%)
followed by Verrucomicrobia (15.13%). The taxa with the highest relative
abundances were unclassified Clostridiales (17.06%) and "5 genus
incertae sedis" from the phylum Verrucomicrobia (12.98%). There was a
decrease in the phylum Chlamydiae and in the genus Mycobacterium after
the second incremental exercise test. Intense exercise
changed the community's structure and aerobic conditioning was
associated with changes in the composition and structure of the
intestinal bacterial population of fillies. The intra-group comparison
showed that chromium or L-carnitine induced moderate changes in the
fecal microbiota of fillies, but the microbiota did not differ from the
control group, which was exercised with no supplementation. Fecal pH
correlated positively with Simpson's index, while plasma pH correlated
negatively. Our results show that exercise and aerobic conditioning can change in the microbiota and provide a basis for further studies enrolling a larger number of horses at different fitness levels to better understand the effects of exercise and training on the intestinal microbiota of horses.
- [PubMed - in process]
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