Effects of Dietary Resveratrol Supplementation on Fermentation Characteristics, Microbial Diversity, and Community Composition of Feces in Hu Sheep

This study aimed to investigate the effects of dietary resveratrol supplementation on fermentation characteristics, microbial diversity, and community composition of feces from Hu sheep. A total of 20 three-month-old Hu sheep with similar body weights (20.62 ± 0.51 kg) were randomly divided into the control group (fed a basal diet, CON) and the treatment group (fed a basal diet supplemented with resveratrol at 100 mg/kg of feed, RES), with 10 sheep in each group, and lasted for 75 days. Feces were collected from each sheep at twenty-four time points for fecal fermentation characteristics determination and microbial analysis. The results showed that the pH value was higher in the RES group than in the CON group (p < 0.05), while the concentration of ammonia nitrogen was lower, showing a 10.6% reduction compared to the CON group (p = 0.013). The richness, Shannon index, and inverse Simpson index of fecal microbiota were higher in the CON group than in the RES group (p < 0.05). The relative abundances of Planctomycetota, Bacteroides, Alistipes, and NK4A214 group were higher in the CON group than in the RES group (p < 0.05). Additionally, the relative abundance of the glycan biosynthesis and metabolism pathway was higher in the CON group (p < 0.05). The relative abundance of Prevotella was lower in the CON group than in the RES group (p < 0.05). Principal co-ordinate analysis (PCoA) revealed no overlap between the two groups, and analysis of similarities (ANOSIM) showed significant differences between the CON and RES groups (R = 0.4560, p = 0.012). Linear discriminant analysis effect size (LEfSe) analysis identified 27 microbial biomarkers, with the RES group having more beneficial bacteria and the CON group having more potentially harmful bacteria. The study demonstrated that dietary resveratrol supplementation reduced the concentration of ammonia nitrogen in feces, decreased microbial diversity, and increased the abundance of beneficial bacteria. The findings of this research provide a post-digestion perspective for evaluating the application of resveratrol in ruminant production.