Background: Fecal microbial transplantation (FMT) is the transfer of feces from a healthy donor into the gastrointestinal tract of a diseased recipient to confer a health benefit. FMT is increasingly utilized in veterinary medicine and is offered commercially by AnimalBiome®.
Objectives: This study aims: 1) to quantitate the colony forming units (CFUs) in AnimalBiome ® FMT products compared to freshly processed FMT and 2) to evaluate the microbial composition across multiple lots of commercial FMT compared to in-house prepared fresh and lyophilized FMT.
Animals: Three lots each of AnimalBiome® DoggyBiome® (DB), DoggyBiome® from raw fed dogs (DBR), and KittyBiome® (KB) were evaluated. Freshly processed stool from screened canine and feline fecal donors were used as controls.
Methods: FMT products were cultured in aerobic and anaerobic environments. 16s rRNA amplicon sequencing (V4 region) was performed on FMT products and colonies taken FMT cultures.
Results: Freshly processed feces consistently yielded the highest CFUs, but did not significantly differ from in-house lyophilized FMT (dogs, p=0.49; cats, p=0.28). KB and in-house feline lyophilized products exhibited comparable viability (p=0.72). In contrast, in-house canine lyophilized FMT viability was significantly greater than DB and DBR (p<0.01). Each donor has unique microbial profiles (p<0.01).
Conclusions and clinical importance: This study provides clinicians with evidence for the viability of commercially available FMT products compared to freshly processed FMT. Further research is needed to determine the impact of FMT processing on engraftment and clinical outcome.
