Integrating microbiome and metabolome analyses to unravel the role of inulin in enhancing the meat quality and bone health of ducks

Inulin, a natural dietary fiber, has various health-promoting bioactivities. However, the impacts of dietary inulin on duck productivity and overall health remain unclear. This study investigated the effects of inulin supplementation on systemic health and its underlying mechanisms by integrating the microbiota and metabolome analyses. One hundred twenty 16-day-old male Cherry Valley ducks with similar initial body weight (BW) were randomly assigned to 20 cages, with two treatments (6 ducks/cage and 10 cages/treatment): a basal diet (CON group) or a basal diet supplemented with 25 g inulin/kg (INU group). The 18-d feeding trials demonstrated that ducks fed the inulin-supplemented diet presented significantly improved growth performance, bone health, and meat quality compared with those in the control group (P < 0.05). Additionally, inulin supplementation reshaped the intestinal microbiota, increasing diversity and the abundance of Alistipes, Ligilactobacillus, and Streptococcus (P < 0.05). Metabolome analysis revealed that inulin feeding significantly modulated 13 metabolites (P < 0.05), which were enriched primarily in health-related metabolic pathways such as taurine and hypotaurine metabolism, steroid hormone biosynthesis, and histidine metabolism. Correlation analysis revealed a positive relationship among the modulated microbes and metabolites and improved healthy parameters. Overall, inulin supplementation improved the bone and muscle health of ducks by specifically modulating key gut microbes, metabolites, and associated metabolic pathways. These findings suggest that inulin supplementation represents a feasible nutritional strategy for improving the meat quality and bone health of intensively raised ducks.