Metagenomic Analysis of the Equine Placental Microbiome

The placenta is a vital, but transient, organ of pregnancy that has been regarded as sterile in both women and mares. Recent evidence in women has demonstrated that the placenta harbors a unique microbiome. The objective of this study was to determine if the equine placenta harbors a microbiome under healthy conditions, and if so, is there any association with the microbiomes of extraplacental body sites (oral, vaginal, or fecal) of the mares. We hypothesize that the equine placental microbiome has a distinctive metagenomic profile, not yet characterized. Fecal, oral, and vaginal samples were taken from pregnant mares within 30 days of foaling, as well as the gravid and non-gravid regions of the chorioallantois at the time of foaling (n=4). Genomic DNA was isolated from all samples, and the bacterial 16s ribosomal RNA gene was amplified by PCR ...