Research into pheasant microflora opens up prospects for developing new probiotics in poultry farming

Modern poultry farming strives to reduce the use of antibiotics , improve productivity, and strengthen animal immunity . In this context, probiotics containing beneficialBacteria play a vital role in restoring the imbalance of microflora. Scientists have isolated key strains from pheasant intestines that can be used to develop probiotics aimed at suppressing pathogenic microflora.

Research has shown that the intestinal microflora of pheasants is characterized by a significant diversity of symbiotic bacteria. Scientists from the Timiryazev State Agrarian University of RUSSIA and the Trubilin Kuban State Agrarian University conducted a metagenomic analysis of beneficial bacterial populations living in the caeca of two species of domestic pheasants: the Romanian and Caucasian.

Analysis revealed that bacteria from the order Pseudomonadales predominate in Caucasian pheasants (93%), while their share in Romanian pheasants was 55%. The researchers also discovered lactobacilli important for the production of probiotics: Lactobacillus coryniformis, Lactobacillus johnsonii, and Lactobacillus reuteri. They identified the genes of these lactobacilli responsible for the synthesis of bacteriocins, which suppress the growth of pathogenic bacteria without the risk of developing resistance.

This study provides a deeper understanding of the intestinal microflora of pheasants and opens the door to the isolation of pure lactobacilli cultures that could be used as probiotics to support the HEALTH of farm animals. The scientists' future plans include studying the safety of the isolated cultures and developing effective microbial formulations for use in poultry farming.