Community analysis of guinea pig faecal samples

The guinea pig (Cavia porcellus) or cavy is a grass-eating animal in the family of rodents. Grass or dried hay is the main diet, which is composed mainly of cellulose and cellulose derivatives. In this research, the microbial diversity of guinea pig faecal samples and their enrichments from various substrates were investigated along with the organic acid production profiles. Our results show that guinea pig faecal samples can be applied as a novel inoculum source for VFA/OA production from complex or non-value organic substrates such as cellulose or grass. Moreover, the cavy gut contains many yet uncultivated bacteria.