16S microbiota analysis in PCdel mice

We investigated the possible mechanism by which paneth cell (PC) deletion might affect small bowel adenoma formation. Since PC defects have been reported to perturb the microbiota, we co-housed mice to avoid potential changes to gut flora. 16S-based microbiome analysis did not reveal any differences in beta diversity or phyla-level composition when comparing the stool, ileal content or ileal mucosa-associated microbiomes of control and PCdel mice. However, further analysis of the small intestine mucosa did reveal that PC-derived Wnt3 promotes tumor formation in vivo.