SFB Abundance Across Animal Vendors
Following the discovery of the association of SFB with immune system maturation, several research units began to investigate Th17 abundance in relation to SFB across animal vendors. In a hallmark study by Ivanov et al.5, it was noted that C57BL/6J mice from the Jackson Laboratory had very low abundance of Th17 cells compared to C57BL/6NTac mice from Taconic Biosciences. Moreover, microbial transfer of cecal contents from conventional Taconic C57BL/6NTac mice into germ-free counterparts, also from Taconic, induced Th17 accumulation. Th17 accumulation was not observed when this procedure was replicated using conventional and germ-free C57BL/6 mice from the Jackson Laboratory. Cohabitation of the conventional Jackson and Taconic mice also induced Th17 accumulation in the Jackson mice.
Based on the data presented by Ivanov et al. in 2009, the preclinical research community broadly concluded that all mice from the Jackson Laboratory are devoid of SFB and all conventional Taconic mice have SFB. This finding resonated particularly with researchers concerned with the effect of SFB-supported Th17 cell maturation and potential downstream effects related to host immunity. The preclinical research community saw a marked change in animal purchasing behavior, particularly among microbiome research units, with researchers ordering animals from specific vendors based on the supposed presence or absence of SFB.
This behavior has persisted for over a decade, based on a simplistic interpretation of these research results, which were representative of specific vendor colonies at a specific time, rather than more broadly representative of all stock at a particular vendor. In fact, in 2015 the Ivanov group reported finding SFB present in some animals from both vendors. In this particular study, the researchers divulged that they screen all incoming animal cohorts for SFB and have found SFB to be present in some cohorts from the Jackson Laboratory as well as from Taconic. Moreover, they stated that the abundance of this bacteria is barrier-specific; thus cohorts of mice from certain locations at Jackson may contain SFB whilst cohorts from Taconic may not4.
Key Takeaways
