Host-Microbiome Interaction: Implications for the cellular and global energy metabolism in the dairy cow (WiMiQ)

• Applicants: Dr. Jana Frahm; Professorin Dr. Korinna Huber; Professorin Dr. Helga Sauerwein; Professorin Dr. Jana Seifert
• Subject Area: Animal Breeding, Animal Nutrition, Animal Husbandry
• Term: since 2011
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 202989534

From the project phase "Mitocow", animal performance data, immunological parameters in blood, metabolite profiles in plasma, liver and milk, hepatic gene expression, mitochondrial DNA haplotypes and gut microbial community showed that mitochondrial functionality is an important building block for efficient energy and substrate metabolism in dairy cows. However, the control of this functionality is multifactorial. Enterotypes, intestinal microbiome clusters, defined by different weights of certain genera, have a clear influence on the metabolic efficiency (recorded as residual energy intake) of the animals. The results from MitoCow thus suggest that the intestinal microbiome may have a role as a mediator between environment and host also in the expression of individual differences. In the follow-up project, the microbiome will now be deflected in its composition and metabolic function via clear differences in the energy supply of the dairy cow. The signals that should follow this deflection of the microbiome are from the microbiome as well as from the host and influence the interaction between host and microbiome. The signals are studied at different levels in major tissues of the dairy cow, in the microbiome and in extracellular vesicles by genomics, transcriptomics, microRNA-omics, proteomics and metabolomics, respectively. A special focus with regard to host-microbiome communication is the mitochondria, which hypothetically may be responsible for the high animal-individual differences.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• Co-Investigator: Professor Dr. Sven Dänicke