RT Journal Article
T1 The association of the rumen virome with methane emissions in dairy cattle
A1 Navarro Marcos, Carlos
A1 Gutiérrez-Rivas, Mónica
A1 Goiri, Idoia
A1 García-Rodríguez, Aser
A1 González-Recio, Óscar
AB Enteric methane production in ruminants is a major environmental concern, yet its association with the ruminal virome remains largely unexplored. Here, we conduct a bioinformatic analysis on previously published ruminal metagenomes from 448 Holstein cows to investigate the virome and its association with methane production. We identify 8933 viral operational taxonomic units (vOTUs), including bacteriophages, archaeophages, megaviruses, and virophages. Differences between high- and low-emitting cows are observed. Low emitters show greater abundance (mean log-FC = 0.72, Padj ≤ 0.049) of some vOTUs infecting bacteria like Prevotella, whereas greater abundance (mean log-FC = 0.70, Padj ≤ 0.047) of archaeophages and megaviruses infecting Methanobrevibacter, ciliates, and fungi, all microorganisms linked to methane production, are observed in high emitters. Associations between viruses and microorganisms might suggest viruses influence methane emissions by modulating key microbial populations. Although mechanisms remain unclear, rumen viruses could serve as biomarkers for selecting low-emission animals or developing microbial interventions
PB Nature Research
YR 2025
FD 2025
LK https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/128230
UL https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/128230
LA eng
NO Navarro Marcos, C., Gutiérrez-Rivas, M., Goiri, I., García-Rodríguez, A., & González-Recio, Ó. (2025). The association of the rumen virome with methane emissions in dairy cattle. Communications biology, 8(1), 1534. https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-025-08896-x
NO Author contributionsC.N.M., I.G., A.G.-R. and O.G.-R. designed the study. I.G. and A.G.-R. collected ruminal samples and methane measurements. M.G.-R. performed laboratorial analyses. C.N.M. performed the bioinformatic analyses. O.G.-R.contributed to the bioinformatic analyses. C.N.M. wrote the manuscript. M.G.-R., I.G., A.G.-R. and O.G.-R. edited the drafts of the manuscript.
NO Plan Nacional de Investigación, Desarrollo e Innovación 2013-2020
NO Consejería de Desarrollo Económico y Competitividad (Madrid, España)
DS Docta Complutense
RD 9 abr 2026