Characterization of the 16S rRNA Microbiome Across Intestinal Segments of Piglets Fed Distinct Type A Milk Phenotype

• Grant number: 25/25507-8
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: April 01, 2026
• End date: July 31, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Veterinary Medicine - Preventive Veterinary Medicine
• Principal Investigator: Vera Letticie de Azevedo Ruiz
• Grantee: Erick Marlon Pereira
• Supervisor: Erika Korzune Ganda
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Zootecnia e Engenharia de Alimentos (FZEA). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Pirassununga , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Pennsylvania State University, United States
• Associated to the scholarship: 25/09922-5 - Intestinal bacterial microbiota of weaned piglets fed A1 and A2 milk, BP.IC

Abstract

The use of bioinformatics technologies has enabled major advances in scientific research into understanding animal microbiomes, many of which have potential translational applications for human medicine. Studies using the swine model have gained strength in the last years due to the similarities between pigs and humans, and they allow us to understand the biological mechanisms of interaction between the host and its microbiota. Diet has a direct influence on the microbial composition of an organism and understanding how these dietary components are able to perform this modulatory function has great scientific value. It is known that different segments of the intestine have different functions and microbial compositions, responding differently to changes in diet. The digestion of different milk phenotypes leads to the formation of bioactive peptides that can play a modulatory role in the intestinal microbiota of animals and humans. In view of this, the objective of the present study is to use bioinformatics tools to understand how the consumption of milk from different phenotypes can impact on the microbial diversity of pigs as a model for human studies. For this, analyses will be performed using R software to process the 16S rRNA library of fecal samples from pigs fed with the A1A1 and A2A2 phenotypes of bovine milk casein protein. Analyses will be performed to determine the quality of the generated library and, after quality confirmation, the alpha and beta diversity variables and the Differential Relative Abundance of the samples will be determined. Thus, we expect to find changes in the microbial composition and in the variables evaluated in the different intestinal segments, reflecting the different mechanisms associated with the dynamics of the digestive process.