Effects of and Supplementation as Direct-Fed Microbials on Rumen Microbiota of Boer and Speckled Goat Breeds.

The effects on rumen microbial communities of direct-fed probiotics, and , singly and in combination as feed supplements to both the Boer and Speckled goats were studied using the Illumina Miseq platform targeting the V3-V4 region of the 16S rRNA microbial genes from sampled rumen fluid. Thirty-six goats of both the Boer and Speckled were divided into five experimental groups: (T1) = diet + ; (T2) = diet + ; (T3) = diet + + ; (T4, positive control) = diet + antibiotic and (T5, negative control) = diet without antibiotics and without probiotics. Our results revealed that Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes, TM7, Proteobacteria, and Euryarchaeota dominate the bacterial communities. In our observations, and supplements reduced the archaeal population of Methanomassiliicocca in the T1, T2 and T3 groups, and caused an increase in the T4 group. Chlamydiae were present only in the T5 group, suggesting that probiotic and antibiotic inhibit the growth of pathogens in the rumen. We inferred, based on our results, that and favour the survival of beneficial microbial communities in the goats' rumen. This may lead to an overall improved feed efficacy and growth rate.