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Marková K, Kreisinger J, Vinkler M. Are there consistent effects of gut microbiota composition on performance, productivity and condition in poultry? Poult Sci 2024; 103:103752. [PMID: 38701628 DOI: 10.1016/j.psj.2024.103752] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2024] [Revised: 04/04/2024] [Accepted: 04/05/2024] [Indexed: 05/05/2024] Open
Abstract
Microbiome of the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) has been identified as one of the crucial factors influencing the health and condition of domestic animals. The global poultry industry faces the challenge of understanding the complex relationship between gut microbiota composition and performance-related traits in birds. Considerable variation exists in the results of correlational studies using either 16S rRNA profiling or metagenomics to identify bacterial taxa associated with performance, productivity, or condition in poultry (e.g., body weight, growth rate, feeding efficiency, or egg yield). In this review, we survey the existing reports, discuss variation in research approaches, and identify bacterial taxa consistently linked to improved or deteriorated performance across individual poultry-focused studies. Our survey revealed high methodological heterogeneity, which was in contrast with vastly uniform focus of the research mainly on the domestic chicken (Gallus gallus) as a model. We also show that the bacterial taxa most frequently used in manipulative experiments and commercial probiotics intended for use in poultry (e.g., species of Lactobacillus, Bacillus, Enterococcus, or Bifidobacterium) do not overlap with the bacteria consistently correlated with their improved performance (Candidatus Arthromitus, Methanobrevibacter). Our conclusions urge for increased methodological standardization of the veterinary research in this field. We highlight the need to bridge the gap between correlational results and experimental applications in animal science. To better understand causality in the observed relationships, future research should involve a broader range of host species that includes both agricultural and wild models, as well as a broader range of age groups.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kateřina Marková
- Charles University, Faculty of Science, Department of Zoology, 128 43 Prague, Czech Republic.
| | - Jakub Kreisinger
- Charles University, Faculty of Science, Department of Zoology, 128 43 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Michal Vinkler
- Charles University, Faculty of Science, Department of Zoology, 128 43 Prague, Czech Republic
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Pieczyńska-Zając JM, Malinowska AM, Pruszyńska-Oszmałek E, Kołodziejski PA, Drzymała-Czyż S, Bajerska J. Effect of a high-fat high-fructose diet on the composition of the intestinal microbiota and its association with metabolic and anthropometric parameters in a letrozole-induced mouse model of polycystic ovary syndrome. Nutrition 2024; 124:112450. [PMID: 38669829 DOI: 10.1016/j.nut.2024.112450] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/09/2024] [Revised: 03/28/2024] [Accepted: 04/01/2024] [Indexed: 04/28/2024]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE It has been suggested that dysbiosis of the gut microbiota is associated with the pathogenesis of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), and that improper diet can aggravate these changes. This study thus aimed to investigate the effects of a high-fat/high-fructose (HF/HFr) diet on the gut microbial community and their metabolites in prepubertal female mice with letrozole (LET)-induced PCOS. We also tested the correlations between the relative abundance of microbial taxa and selected PCOS parameters. RESEARCH METHODS & PROCEDURES Thirty-two C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into four groups (n = 8) and implanted with LET or a placebo, with simultaneous administration of a HF/HFr diet or standard diet (StD) for 5 wk. The blood and intestinal contents were collected after the sacrifice. RESULTS Placebo + HF/HFr and LET + HF/HFr had significantly higher microbial alpha diversity than either group fed StD. The LET-implanted mice fed StD had a significantly higher abundance of Prevotellaceae_UCG-001 than the placebo mice fed StD. Both groups fed the HF/HFr diet had significantly lower fecal levels of short-chain fatty acids than the placebo mice fed StD, while the LET + HF/HFr animals had significantly higher concentrations of lipopolysaccharides in blood serum than either the placebo or LET mice fed StD. Opposite correlations were observed between Turicibacter and Lactobacillus and the lipid profile, CONCLUSION: HF/HFr diet had a much stronger effect on the composition of the intestinal microbiota of prepubertal mice than LET itself.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Anna Maria Malinowska
- Laboratory of Microbiology, Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Ewa Pruszyńska-Oszmałek
- Department of Animal Physiology, Biochemistry and Biostructure, Poznań University of Life Sciences, Poznań, Poland
| | - Paweł Antoni Kołodziejski
- Department of Animal Physiology, Biochemistry and Biostructure, Poznań University of Life Sciences, Poznań, Poland
| | | | - Joanna Bajerska
- Department of Human Nutrition and Dietetics, Poznań University of Life Sciences, Poznań, Poland.
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Ruuskanen S. Early-life environmental effects on birds: epigenetics and microbiome as mechanisms underlying long-lasting phenotypic changes. J Exp Biol 2024; 227:jeb246024. [PMID: 38449325 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.246024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/08/2024]
Abstract
Although the long-lasting effects of variation in early-life environment have been well documented across organisms, the underlying causal mechanisms are only recently starting to be unraveled. Yet understanding the underlying mechanisms of long-lasting effects can help us predict how organisms will respond to changing environments. Birds offer a great system in which to study developmental plasticity and its underlying mechanisms owing to the production of large external eggs and variation in developmental trajectories, combined with a long tradition of applied, physiological, ecological and evolutionary research. Epigenetic changes (such as DNA methylation) have been suggested to be a key mechanism mediating long-lasting effects of the early-life environment across taxa. More recently, changes in the early-life gut microbiome have been identified as another potential mediator of developmental plasticity. As a first step in understanding whether these mechanisms contribute to developmental plasticity in birds, this Review summarizes how changes in early-life environment (both prenatal and postnatal) influence epigenetic markers and the gut microbiome. The literature shows how both early-life biotic (such as resources and social environment) and abiotic (thermal environment and various anthropogenic stressors) factors modify epigenetic markers and the gut microbiome in birds, yet data concerning many other environmental factors are limited. The causal links of these modifications to lasting phenotypic changes are still scarce, but changes in the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis have been identified as one putative pathway. This Review identifies several knowledge gaps, including data on the long-term effects, stability of the molecular changes, and lack of diversity in the systems studied, and provides directions for future research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Suvi Ruuskanen
- Department of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, Survontie 9C, 40500 Jyväskylä, Finland
- Department of Biology, University of Turku, Vesilinnankatu 5, 20500 Turku, Finland
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Scholier T, Lavrinienko A, Kallio ER, Watts PC, Mappes T. Effects of past and present habitat on the gut microbiota of a wild rodent. Proc Biol Sci 2024; 291:20232531. [PMID: 38320610 PMCID: PMC10846943 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2023.2531] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/2023] [Accepted: 01/04/2024] [Indexed: 02/08/2024] Open
Abstract
The response of the gut microbiota to changes in the host environment can be influenced by both the host's past and present habitats. To quantify their contributions for two different life stages, we studied the gut microbiota of wild bank voles (Clethrionomys glareolus) by performing a reciprocal transfer experiment with adults and their newborn offspring between urban and rural forests in a boreal ecosystem. Here, we show that the post-transfer gut microbiota in adults did not shift to resemble the post-transfer gut microbiota of animals 'native' to the present habitat. Instead, their gut microbiota appear to be structured by both their past and present habitat, with some features of the adult gut microbiota still determined by the past living environment (e.g. alpha diversity, compositional turnover). By contrast, we did not find evidence of the maternal past habitat (maternal effects) affecting the post-transfer gut microbiota of the juvenile offspring, and only a weak effect of the present habitat. Our results show that both the contemporary living environment and the past environment of the host organism can structure the gut microbiota communities, especially in adult individuals. These data are relevant for decision-making in the field of conservation and wildlife translocations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tiffany Scholier
- Department of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä 40014, Finland
| | - Anton Lavrinienko
- Department of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä 40014, Finland
- Laboratory of Food Systems Biotechnology, Institute of Food, Nutrition and Health, ETH Zürich, Zürich 8092, Switzerland
| | - Eva R. Kallio
- Department of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä 40014, Finland
| | - Phillip C. Watts
- Department of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä 40014, Finland
| | - Tapio Mappes
- Department of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä 40014, Finland
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Anzà S, Schneider D, Daniel R, Heistermann M, Sangmaneedet S, Ostner J, Schülke O. The long-term gut bacterial signature of a wild primate is associated with a timing effect of pre- and postnatal maternal glucocorticoid levels. Microbiome 2023; 11:165. [PMID: 37501202 PMCID: PMC10373267 DOI: 10.1186/s40168-023-01596-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2022] [Accepted: 06/11/2023] [Indexed: 07/29/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND During development, elevated levels of maternal glucocorticoids (GCs) can have detrimental effects on offspring morphology, cognition, and behavior as well as physiology and metabolism. Depending on the timing of exposure, such effects may vary in strength or even reverse in direction, may alleviate with age, or may concern more stable and long-term programming of phenotypic traits. Maternal effects on gut bacterial diversity, composition, and function, and the persistence of such effects into adulthood of long-lived model species in the natural habitats remain underexplored. RESULTS In a cross-sectional sample of infant, juvenile, and adult Assamese macaques, the timing of exposure to elevated maternal GCs during ontogeny was associated with the gut bacterial community of the offspring. Specifically, naturally varying maternal GC levels during early but not late gestation or lactation were associated with reduced bacterial richness. The overall effect of maternal GCs during early gestation on the gut bacterial composition and function exacerbated with offspring age and was 10 times stronger than the effect associated with exposure during late prenatal or postnatal periods. Instead, variation in maternal GCs during the late prenatal or postnatal period had less pronounced or less stable statistical effects and therefore a weaker effect on the entire bacterial community composition, particularly in adult individuals. Finally, higher early prenatal GCs were associated with an increase in the relative abundance of several potential pro-inflammatory bacteria and a decrease in the abundance of Bifidobacterium and other anti-inflammatory taxa, an effect that exacerbated with age. CONCLUSIONS In primates, the gut microbiota can be shaped by developmental effects with strong timing effects on plasticity and potentially detrimental consequences for adult health. Together with results on other macaque species, this study suggests potential detrimental developmental effects similar to rapid inflammaging, suggesting that prenatal exposure to high maternal GC concentrations is a common cause underlying both phenomena. Our findings await confirmation by metagenomic functional and causal analyses and by longitudinal studies of long-lived, ecologically flexible primates in their natural habitat, including developmental effects that originate before birth. Video Abstract.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simone Anzà
- Behavioral Ecology Department, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany.
- Primate Social Evolution Group, German Primate Center, Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, Goettingen, Germany.
- Leibniz ScienceCampus Primate Cognition, German Primate Center, Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, Goettingen, Germany.
- Genomic and Applied Microbiology and Göttingen Genomics Laboratory, Institute of Microbiology and Genetics, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany.
| | - Dominik Schneider
- Genomic and Applied Microbiology and Göttingen Genomics Laboratory, Institute of Microbiology and Genetics, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Rolf Daniel
- Genomic and Applied Microbiology and Göttingen Genomics Laboratory, Institute of Microbiology and Genetics, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Michael Heistermann
- Endocrinology Laboratory, German Primate Center, Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, Goettingen, Germany
| | - Somboon Sangmaneedet
- Department of Pathobiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, Thailand
| | - Julia Ostner
- Behavioral Ecology Department, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany
- Primate Social Evolution Group, German Primate Center, Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, Goettingen, Germany
- Leibniz ScienceCampus Primate Cognition, German Primate Center, Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, Goettingen, Germany
| | - Oliver Schülke
- Behavioral Ecology Department, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany
- Primate Social Evolution Group, German Primate Center, Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, Goettingen, Germany
- Leibniz ScienceCampus Primate Cognition, German Primate Center, Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, Goettingen, Germany
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Tang K, Tao L, Wang Y, Wang Q, Fu C, Chen B, Zhang Z, Fu Y. Temporal Variations in the Gut Microbiota of the Globally Endangered Sichuan Partridge (Arborophila rufipectus): Implications for Adaptation to Seasonal Dietary Change and Conservation. Appl Environ Microbiol 2023; 89:e0074723. [PMID: 37272815 PMCID: PMC10305732 DOI: 10.1128/aem.00747-23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2023] [Accepted: 05/10/2023] [Indexed: 06/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Host-associated microbiotas are known to influence host health by aiding digestion, metabolism, nutrition, physiology, immune function, and pathogen resistance. Although an increasing number of studies have investigated the avian microbiome, there is a lack of research on the gut microbiotas of wild birds, especially endangered pheasants. Owing to the difficulty of characterizing the dynamics of dietary composition, especially in omnivores, how the gut microbiotas of birds respond to seasonal dietary changes remains poorly understood. The Sichuan partridge (Arborophila rufipectus) is an endangered pheasant species with a small population endemic to the mountains of southwest China. Here, 16S rRNA sequencing and Tax4Fun were used to characterize and compare community structure and functions of the gut microbiota in the Sichuan partridges across three critical periods of their annual life cycle (breeding, postbreeding wandering, and overwintering). We found that the microbial communities were dominated by Firmicutes, Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria, and Cyanobacteria throughout the year. Diversity of the gut microbiotas was highest during postbreeding wandering and lowest during the overwintering periods. Seasonal dietary changes and reassembly of the gut microbial community occurred consistently. Composition, diversity, and functions of the gut microbiota exhibited diet-associated variations, which might facilitate host adaptation to diverse diets in response to environmental shifts. Moreover, 28 potential pathogenic genera were detected, and their composition differed significantly between the three periods. Investigation of the wild bird gut microbiota dynamics has enhanced our understanding of diet-microbiota associations over the annual life cycle of birds, aiding in the integrative conservation of this endangered bird. IMPORTANCE Characterizing the gut microbiotas of wild birds across seasons will shed light on their annual life cycle. Due to sampling difficulties and the lack of detailed dietary information, studies on how the gut microbiota adapts to seasonal dietary changes of wild birds are scarce. Based on more detailed dietary composition, we found a seasonal reshaping pattern of the gut microbiota of Sichuan partridges corresponding to their seasonal dietary changes. The variation in diet and gut microbiota potentially facilitated the diversity of dietary niches of this endangered pheasant, revealing a seasonal diet-microbiota association across the three periods of the annual cycle. In addition, identifying a variety of potentially pathogenic bacterial genera aids in managing the health and improving survival of Sichuan partridges. Incorporation of microbiome research in the conservation of endangered species contributes to our comprehensive understanding the diet-host-microbiota relationship in wild birds and refinement of conservation practices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Keyi Tang
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Land Resources Evaluation and Monitoring in Southwest, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu, China
- College of Life Sciences, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu, China
| | - Ling Tao
- College of Life Sciences, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu, China
| | - Yufeng Wang
- College of Life Sciences, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu, China
| | - Qiong Wang
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Land Resources Evaluation and Monitoring in Southwest, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu, China
- College of Life Sciences, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu, China
| | - Changkun Fu
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Land Resources Evaluation and Monitoring in Southwest, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu, China
- College of Life Sciences, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu, China
| | - Benping Chen
- Laojunshan National Nature Reserve Administration, Pingshan, Sichuan, China
| | - Zhengwang Zhang
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Biodiversity Science and Ecological Engineering, College of Life Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Yiqiang Fu
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Land Resources Evaluation and Monitoring in Southwest, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu, China
- College of Life Sciences, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu, China
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Liukkonen M, Hukkanen M, Cossin-Sevrin N, Stier A, Vesterinen E, Grond K, Ruuskanen S. No evidence for associations between brood size, gut microbiome diversity and survival in great tit (Parus major) nestlings. Anim Microbiome 2023; 5:19. [PMID: 36949549 PMCID: PMC10031902 DOI: 10.1186/s42523-023-00241-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2022] [Accepted: 03/13/2023] [Indexed: 03/24/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The gut microbiome forms at an early stage, yet data on the environmental factors influencing the development of wild avian microbiomes is limited. As the gut microbiome is a vital part of organismal health, it is important to understand how it may connect to host performance. The early studies with wild gut microbiome have shown that the rearing environment may be of importance in gut microbiome formation, yet the results vary across taxa, and the effects of specific environmental factors have not been characterized. Here, wild great tit (Parus major) broods were manipulated to either reduce or enlarge the original brood soon after hatching. We investigated if brood size was associated with nestling bacterial gut microbiome, and whether gut microbiome diversity predicted survival. Fecal samples were collected at mid-nestling stage and sequenced with the 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing, and nestling growth and survival were measured. RESULTS Gut microbiome diversity showed high variation between individuals, but this variation was not significantly explained by brood size or body mass. Additionally, we did not find a significant effect of brood size on body mass or gut microbiome composition. We also demonstrated that early handling had no impact on nestling performance or gut microbiome. Furthermore, we found no significant association between gut microbiome diversity and short-term (survival to fledging) or mid-term (apparent juvenile) survival. CONCLUSIONS We found no clear association between early-life environment, offspring condition and gut microbiome. This suggests that brood size is not a significantly contributing factor to great tit nestling condition, and that other environmental and genetic factors may be more strongly linked to offspring condition and gut microbiome. Future studies should expand into other early-life environmental factors e.g., diet composition and quality, and parental influences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martta Liukkonen
- Department of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, Jyvaskyla, Finland.
| | - Mikaela Hukkanen
- Department of Biology, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
- Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | | | - Antoine Stier
- Department of Biology, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
- Univ Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, CNRS, ENTPE, UMR 5023 LEHNA, 69622, Lyon, France
- Institut Pluridisciplinaire Hubert Curien, UMR7178, Université de Strasbourg, CNRS, Strasbourg, France
| | | | - Kirsten Grond
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alaska Anchorage, Anchorage, AK, 99508, USA
| | - Suvi Ruuskanen
- Department of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, Jyvaskyla, Finland
- Department of Biology, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
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Bensch HM, Tolf C, Waldenström J, Lundin D, Zöttl M. Bacteroidetes to Firmicutes: captivity changes the gut microbiota composition and diversity in a social subterranean rodent. Anim Microbiome 2023; 5:9. [PMID: 36765400 PMCID: PMC9912604 DOI: 10.1186/s42523-023-00231-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2022] [Accepted: 02/01/2023] [Indexed: 02/12/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND In mammals, the gut microbiota has important effects on the health of their hosts. Recent research highlights that animal populations that live in captivity often differ in microbiota diversity and composition from wild populations. However, the changes that may occur when animals move to captivity remain difficult to predict and factors generating such differences are poorly understood. Here we compare the bacterial gut microbiota of wild and captive Damaraland mole-rats (Fukomys damarensis) originating from a population in the southern Kalahari Desert to characterise the changes of the gut microbiota that occur from one generation to the next generation in a long-lived, social rodent species. RESULTS We found a clear divergence in the composition of the gut microbiota of captive and wild Damaraland mole-rats. Although the dominating higher-rank bacterial taxa were the same in the two groups, captive animals had an increased ratio of relative abundance of Firmicutes to Bacteroidetes compared to wild animals. The Amplicon Sequence Variants (ASVs) that were strongly associated with wild animals were commonly members of the same bacterial families as those strongly associated with captive animals. Captive animals had much higher ASV richness compared to wild-caught animals, explained by an increased richness within the Firmicutes. CONCLUSION We found that the gut microbiota of captive hosts differs substantially from the gut microbiota composition of wild hosts. The largest differences between the two groups were found in shifts in relative abundances and diversity of Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hanna M. Bensch
- grid.8148.50000 0001 2174 3522Department of Biology and Environmental Science, Centre for Ecology and Evolution in Microbial Model Systems (EEMIS), Linnaeus University, 391 82 Kalmar, Sweden ,Kalahari Research Centre, Kuruman River Reserve, Van Zylsrus, South Africa
| | - Conny Tolf
- grid.8148.50000 0001 2174 3522Department of Biology and Environmental Science, Centre for Ecology and Evolution in Microbial Model Systems (EEMIS), Linnaeus University, 391 82 Kalmar, Sweden
| | - Jonas Waldenström
- grid.8148.50000 0001 2174 3522Department of Biology and Environmental Science, Centre for Ecology and Evolution in Microbial Model Systems (EEMIS), Linnaeus University, 391 82 Kalmar, Sweden
| | - Daniel Lundin
- grid.8148.50000 0001 2174 3522Department of Biology and Environmental Science, Centre for Ecology and Evolution in Microbial Model Systems (EEMIS), Linnaeus University, 391 82 Kalmar, Sweden
| | - Markus Zöttl
- grid.8148.50000 0001 2174 3522Department of Biology and Environmental Science, Centre for Ecology and Evolution in Microbial Model Systems (EEMIS), Linnaeus University, 391 82 Kalmar, Sweden ,Kalahari Research Centre, Kuruman River Reserve, Van Zylsrus, South Africa
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Chakraborty M, Gautam A, Das O, Masid A, Bhaumik M. Prenatal arsenic exposure stymies gut butyrate production and enhances gut permeability in post natal life even in absence of arsenic deftly through miR122-Occludin pathway. Toxicol Lett 2023; 374:19-30. [PMID: 36473683 DOI: 10.1016/j.toxlet.2022.11.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2022] [Revised: 11/15/2022] [Accepted: 11/21/2022] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
This discourse attempts to capture a few important dimensions of gut physiology like microbial homeostasis, short chain fatty acid (SCFA) production, occludin expression, and gut permeability in post-natal life of mice those received arsenic only during pre-natal life. Adult Balb/c mice were fed with 4 ppm arsenic trioxide in drinking water during breeding and gestation. After the birth of the pups, the arsenic water was withdrawn and replaced with clean drinking water. The pups were allowed to grow for 28 days (pAs-mice) and age matched Balb/c mice which were never exposed to arsenic served as control The pAs-mice showed a striking reduction in Firmicutes to Bacteroidetes (F/B) ratio coupled with a decrease in tight junction protein, occludin resulting in an increase in gut permeability, increased infiltration of inflammatory cells in the colon and decrease in common SCFAs in which butyrate reduction was quite prominent in fecal samples as compared to normal control. The above phenotypes of pAs-mice were mostly reversed by supplementing 5% sodium butyrate (w/w) with food from 21st to 28th day. The ability of butyrate in enhancing occludin expression, in particular, was dissected further. As miR122 causes degradation of Occludin mRNA, we transiently overexpressed miR122 by injecting appropriate plasmids and showed reversal of butyrate effects in pAs-mice. Thus, pre-natal arsenic exposure orchestrates variety of effects by decreasing butyrate in pAs-mice leading to increased permeability due to reduced occludin expression. Our research adds a new dimension to our understanding that pre-natal arsenic exposure imprints in post-natal life while there was no further arsenic exposure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mainak Chakraborty
- Division of Immunology, ICMR-National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases, Beleghata, Kolkata 700010, India
| | - Anupam Gautam
- Department of Algorithms in Bioinformatics, Institute for Bioinformatics and Medical Informatics, University of Tübingen, Sand 14, 72076 Tübingen, Germany; International Max Planck Research School "From Molecules to Organisms'', Max Planck Institute for Biology Tübingen, Max-Planck-Ring∼5, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
| | - Oishika Das
- Division of Immunology, ICMR-National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases, Beleghata, Kolkata 700010, India
| | - Aaheli Masid
- Division of Immunology, ICMR-National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases, Beleghata, Kolkata 700010, India
| | - Moumita Bhaumik
- Division of Immunology, ICMR-National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases, Beleghata, Kolkata 700010, India.
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Worsley SF, Davies CS, Mannarelli ME, Komdeur J, Dugdale HL, Richardson DS. Assessing the causes and consequences of gut mycobiome variation in a wild population of the Seychelles warbler. Microbiome 2022; 10:242. [PMID: 36575553 PMCID: PMC9795730 DOI: 10.1186/s40168-022-01432-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2022] [Accepted: 11/20/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Considerable research has focussed on the importance of bacterial communities within the vertebrate gut microbiome (GM). However, studies investigating the significance of other microbial kingdoms, such as fungi, are notably lacking, despite their potential to influence host processes. Here, we characterise the fungal GM of individuals living in a natural population of Seychelles warblers (Acrocephalus sechellensis). We evaluate the extent to which fungal GM structure is shaped by environment and host factors, including genome-wide heterozygosity and variation at key immune genes (major histocompatibility complex (MHC) and Toll-like receptor (TLR)). Importantly, we also explore the relationship between fungal GM differences and subsequent host survival. To our knowledge, this is the first time that the genetic drivers and fitness consequences of fungal GM variation have been characterised for a wild vertebrate population. RESULTS Environmental factors, including season and territory quality, explain the largest proportion of variance in the fungal GM. In contrast, neither host age, sex, genome-wide heterozygosity, nor TLR3 genotype was associated with fungal GM differences in Seychelles warblers. However, the presence of four MHC-I alleles and one MHC-II allele was associated with changes in fungal GM alpha diversity. Changes in fungal richness ranged from between 1 and 10 sequencing variants lost or gained; in some cases, this accounted for 20% of the fungal variants carried by an individual. In addition to this, overall MHC-I allelic diversity was associated with small, but potentially important, changes in fungal GM composition. This is evidenced by the fact that fungal GM composition differed between individuals that survived or died within 7 months of being sampled. CONCLUSIONS Our results suggest that environmental factors play a primary role in shaping the fungal GM, but that components of the host immune system-specifically the MHC-may also contribute to the variation in fungal communities across individuals within wild populations. Furthermore, variation in the fungal GM can be associated with differential survival in the wild. Further work is needed to establish the causality of such relationships and, thus, the extent to which components of the GM may impact host evolution. Video Abstract.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah F Worsley
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norfolk, NR4 7TJ, UK.
| | - Charli S Davies
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norfolk, NR4 7TJ, UK
- NERC Biomolecular Analysis Facility, Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, S10 2TN, UK
| | - Maria-Elena Mannarelli
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norfolk, NR4 7TJ, UK
| | - Jan Komdeur
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, P.O. Box 11103, 9700 CC, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Hannah L Dugdale
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, P.O. Box 11103, 9700 CC, Groningen, The Netherlands
- Faculty of Biological Sciences, School of Biology, University of Leeds, Leeds, LS2 9JT, UK
| | - David S Richardson
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norfolk, NR4 7TJ, UK.
- Nature Seychelles, Roche Caiman, Mahé, Republic of Seychelles.
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11
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Gabor CR, Villatoro-castañeda M, Carlos-shanley C, Ujhegyi N, Bókony V. Gut Bacterial Communities Vary across Habitats and Their Diversity Increases with Increasing Glucocorticoids in Toad Tadpoles. Diversity 2022; 15:23. [DOI: 10.3390/d15010023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
The gut microbiome is important for host health and can be influenced by environmental and hormonal changes. We studied the interactions between anthropogenic land use, glucocorticoid hormones, and gut bacterial communities in common toads (Bufo bufo). We sampled tadpoles from ponds of three habitat types (natural, agricultural, and urban ponds), examined gut microbiome composition using amplicon sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene, and measured the associated stress physiology using water-borne hormones. Tadpoles from different habitat types significantly differed in bacterial composition. However, bacterial richness, Shannon diversity, and Firmicutes to Bacteroidota ratio did not vary with habitat type. In contrast with other studies, we found a positive correlation between baseline corticosterone release rate and bacterial diversity. Stress response and negative feedback were not significantly correlated with bacterial diversity. These results suggest that, despite alterations in the composition of intestinal bacterial communities due to land-use change, common toad tadpoles in anthropogenic habitats may maintain their physiological health in terms of the “gut-brain axis”.
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12
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Johnson KVA, Watson KK, Dunbar RIM, Burnet PWJ. Sociability in a non-captive macaque population is associated with beneficial gut bacteria. Front Microbiol 2022; 13:1032495. [PMID: 36439813 PMCID: PMC9691693 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2022.1032495] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2022] [Accepted: 10/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The relationship between social behaviour and the microbiome is known to be reciprocal. Research in wild animal populations, particularly in primate social groups, has revealed the role that social interactions play in microbial transmission, whilst studies in laboratory animals have demonstrated that the gut microbiome can affect multiple aspects of behaviour, including social behaviour. Here we explore behavioural variation in a non-captive animal population with respect to the abundance of specific bacterial genera. Social behaviour based on grooming interactions is assessed in a population of rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta), and combined with gut microbiome data. We focus our analyses on microbiome genera previously linked to sociability and autistic behaviours in rodents and humans. We show in this macaque population that some of these genera are also related to an individual's propensity to engage in social interactions. Interestingly, we find that several of the genera positively related to sociability, such as Faecalibacterium, are well known for their beneficial effects on health and their anti-inflammatory properties. In contrast, the genus Streptococcus, which includes pathogenic species, is more abundant in less sociable macaques. Our results indicate that microorganisms whose abundance varies with individual social behaviour also have functional links to host immune status. Overall, these findings highlight the connections between social behaviour, microbiome composition, and health in an animal population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katerina V.-A. Johnson
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom,Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom,*Correspondence: Katerina V.-A. Johnson,
| | - Karli K. Watson
- Institute of Cognitive Science, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, United States
| | - Robin I. M. Dunbar
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
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13
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Thie N, Corl A, Turjeman S, Efrat R, Kamath PL, Getz WM, Bowie RCK, Nathan R. Linking migration and microbiota at a major stopover site in a long-distance avian migrant. Mov Ecol 2022; 10:46. [PMID: 36345043 PMCID: PMC9641824 DOI: 10.1186/s40462-022-00347-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2022] [Accepted: 10/19/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Migration is one of the most physical and energetically demanding periods in an individual bird's life. The composition of the bird's gut or cloacal microbiota can temporarily change during migration, likely due to differences in diets, habitats and other environmental conditions experienced en route. However, how physiological condition, migratory patterns, and other drivers interact to affect microbiota composition of migratory birds is still unclear. We sampled the cloacal bacterial microbiota of a long-distance migrant, the steppe buzzard (Buteo buteo vulpinus), at an important spring stopover bottleneck in Eilat, Israel, after crossing the ca. 1800 km Sahara Desert. We examined whether diversity and composition of the cloacal microbiota varied with body condition, sex, movement patterns (i.e., arrival time and migration distance), and survival. Early arrival to Eilat was associated with better body condition, longer post-Eilat spring migration distance, higher microbial α-diversity, and differences in microbiota composition. Specifically, early arrivals had higher abundance of the phylum Synergistota and five genera, including Jonquetella and Peptococcus, whereas the phylum Proteobacteria and genus Escherichia-Shigella (as well as three other genera) were more abundant in later arrivals. While the differences in α-diversity and Escherichia-Shigella seem to be mainly driven by body condition, other compositional differences associated with arrival date could be indicators of longer migratory journeys (e.g., pre-fueling at wintering grounds or stopover habitats along the way) or migratory performance. No significant differences were found between the microbiota of surviving and non-surviving individuals. Overall, our results indicate that variation in steppe buzzard microbiota is linked to variation in migratory patterns (i.e., capture/arrival date) and body condition, highlighting the importance of sampling the microbiota of GPS-tracked individuals on multiple occasions along their migration routes to gain a more detailed understanding of the links between migration, microbiota, and health in birds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nikki Thie
- Movement Ecology Lab, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel.
| | - Ammon Corl
- Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Sondra Turjeman
- Movement Ecology Lab, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
- Azrieli Faculty of Medicine, Bar-Ilan University, Safed, Israel
| | - Ron Efrat
- Movement Ecology Lab, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
- Mitrani Department of Desert Ecology, Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Midreshet Ben-Gurion, Israel
| | - Pauline L Kamath
- School of Food and Agriculture, University of Maine, Orono, ME, USA
| | - Wayne M Getz
- Department of Environmental Science Policy and Management, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
- School of Mathematical Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa
| | - Rauri C K Bowie
- Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Ran Nathan
- Movement Ecology Lab, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel.
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14
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Risely A, Schmid DW, Müller-Klein N, Wilhelm K, Clutton-Brock TH, Manser MB, Sommer S. Gut microbiota individuality is contingent on temporal scale and age in wild meerkats. Proc Biol Sci 2022; 289:20220609. [PMID: 35975437 PMCID: PMC9382201 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2022.0609] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2022] [Accepted: 08/01/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Inter-individual differences in gut microbiota composition are hypothesized to generate variation in host fitness-a premise for the evolution of host-gut microbe symbioses. However, recent evidence suggests that gut microbial communities are highly dynamic, challenging the notion that individuals harbour unique gut microbial phenotypes. Leveraging a long-term dataset of wild meerkats, we reconcile these concepts by demonstrating that the relative importance of identity for shaping gut microbiota phenotypes depends on the temporal scale. Across meerkat lifespan, year-to-year variation overshadowed the effects of identity and social group in predicting gut microbiota composition, with identity explaining on average less than 2% of variation. However, identity was the strongest predictor of microbial phenotypes over short sampling intervals (less than two months), predicting on average 20% of variation. The effect of identity was also dependent on meerkat age, with the gut microbiota becoming more individualized and stable as meerkats aged. Nevertheless, while the predictive power of identity was negligible after two months, gut microbiota composition remained weakly individualized compared to that of other meerkats for up to 1 year. These findings illuminate the degree to which individualized gut microbial signatures can be expected, with important implications for the time frames over which gut microbial phenotypes may mediate host physiology, behaviour and fitness in natural populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alice Risely
- Institute for Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation Genomics, Ulm University, Ulm, Germany
| | - Dominik W. Schmid
- Institute for Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation Genomics, Ulm University, Ulm, Germany
| | - Nadine Müller-Klein
- Institute for Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation Genomics, Ulm University, Ulm, Germany
| | - Kerstin Wilhelm
- Institute for Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation Genomics, Ulm University, Ulm, Germany
| | - Tim H. Clutton-Brock
- Large Animal Research Group, Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
- Mammal Research Institute, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
- Kalahari Research Trust, Kuruman River Reserve, Northern Cape, South Africa
| | - Marta B. Manser
- Mammal Research Institute, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
- Kalahari Research Trust, Kuruman River Reserve, Northern Cape, South Africa
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Simone Sommer
- Institute for Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation Genomics, Ulm University, Ulm, Germany
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15
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Hanhimäki E, Watts PC, Koskela E, Koteja P, Mappes T, Hämäläinen AM. Evolved high aerobic capacity has context-specific effects on gut microbiota. Front Ecol Evol 2022. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2022.934164] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Gut microbiota is expected to coevolve with the host's physiology and may play a role in adjusting the host's energy metabolism to suit the host's environment. To evaluate the effects of both evolved host metabolism and the environmental context in shaping the gut microbiota, we used a unique combination of (1) experimental evolution to create selection lines for a fast metabolism and (2) a laboratory-to-field translocation study. Mature bank voles Myodes glareolus from lines selected for high aerobic capacity (A lines) and from unselected control (C lines) were released into large (0.2 ha) outdoor enclosures for longitudinal monitoring. To examine whether the natural environment elicited a similar or more pronounced impact on the gut microbiota of the next generation, we also sampled the field-reared offspring. The gut microbiota were characterized using 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing of fecal samples. The artificial selection for fast metabolism had minimal impact on the gut microbiota in laboratory conditions but in field conditions, there were differences between the selection lines (A lines vs. C lines) in the diversity, community, and resilience of the gut microbiota. Notably, the selection lines differed in the less abundant bacteria throughout the experiment. The lab-to-field transition resulted in an increase in alpha diversity and an altered community composition in the gut microbiota, characterized by a significant increase in the relative abundance of Actinobacteria and a decrease of Patescibacteria. Also, the selection lines showed different temporal patterns in changes in microbiota composition, as the average gut microbiota alpha diversity of the C lines, but not A lines, was temporarily reduced during the initial transition to the field. In surviving young voles, the alpha diversity of gut microbiota was significantly higher in A-line than C-line voles. These results indicate that the association of host metabolism and gut microbiota is context-specific, likely mediated by behavioral or physiological modifications in response to the environment.
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16
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Sadoughi B, Schneider D, Daniel R, Schülke O, Ostner J. Aging gut microbiota of wild macaques are equally diverse, less stable, but progressively personalized. Microbiome 2022; 10:95. [PMID: 35718778 PMCID: PMC9206754 DOI: 10.1186/s40168-022-01283-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2022] [Accepted: 04/21/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Pronounced heterogeneity of age trajectories has been identified as a hallmark of the gut microbiota in humans and has been explained by marked changes in lifestyle and health condition. Comparatively, age-related personalization of microbiota is understudied in natural systems limiting our comprehension of patterns observed in humans from ecological and evolutionary perspectives. RESULTS Here, we tested age-related changes in the diversity, stability, and composition of the gut bacterial community using 16S rRNA gene sequencing with dense repeated sampling over three seasons in a cross-sectional age sample of adult female Assamese macaques (Macaca assamensis) living in their natural forest habitat. Gut bacterial composition exhibited a personal signature which became less stable as individuals aged. This lack of stability was not explained by differences in microbiota diversity but rather linked to an increase in the relative abundance of rare bacterial taxa. The lack of age-related changes in core taxa or convergence with age to a common state of the community hampered predicting gut bacterial composition of aged individuals. On the contrary, we found increasing personalization of the gut bacterial composition with age, indicating that composition in older individuals was increasingly divergent from the rest of the population. Reduced direct transmission of bacteria resulting from decreasing social activity may contribute to, but not be sufficient to explain, increasing personalization with age. CONCLUSIONS Together, our results challenge the assumption of a constant microbiota through adult life in a wild primate. Within the limits of this study, the fact that increasing personalization of the aging microbiota is not restricted to humans suggests the underlying process to be evolved instead of provoked only by modern lifestyle of and health care for the elderly. Video abstract.
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Affiliation(s)
- Baptiste Sadoughi
- Department of Behavioral Ecology, Johann-Friedrich-Blumenbach Institute for Zoology and Anthropology, Georg-August-University Göttingen, Kellnerweg 6, D-37077, Göttingen, Germany.
- Research Group Primate Social Evolution, German Primate Center, Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, Göttingen, Germany.
- Genomic and Applied Microbiology and Göttingen Genomics Laboratory, Institute of Microbiology and Genetics, Georg-August-University Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany.
- Leibniz ScienceCampus Primate Cognition, German Primate Center, Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, Göttingen, Germany.
| | - Dominik Schneider
- Genomic and Applied Microbiology and Göttingen Genomics Laboratory, Institute of Microbiology and Genetics, Georg-August-University Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Rolf Daniel
- Genomic and Applied Microbiology and Göttingen Genomics Laboratory, Institute of Microbiology and Genetics, Georg-August-University Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Oliver Schülke
- Department of Behavioral Ecology, Johann-Friedrich-Blumenbach Institute for Zoology and Anthropology, Georg-August-University Göttingen, Kellnerweg 6, D-37077, Göttingen, Germany
- Research Group Primate Social Evolution, German Primate Center, Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, Göttingen, Germany
- Leibniz ScienceCampus Primate Cognition, German Primate Center, Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Julia Ostner
- Department of Behavioral Ecology, Johann-Friedrich-Blumenbach Institute for Zoology and Anthropology, Georg-August-University Göttingen, Kellnerweg 6, D-37077, Göttingen, Germany
- Research Group Primate Social Evolution, German Primate Center, Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, Göttingen, Germany
- Leibniz ScienceCampus Primate Cognition, German Primate Center, Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, Göttingen, Germany
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17
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Weitzman CL, Belden LK, May M, Langager MM, Dalloul RA, Hawley DM. Antibiotic perturbation of gut bacteria does not significantly alter host responses to ocular disease in a songbird species. PeerJ 2022; 10:e13559. [PMID: 35707121 PMCID: PMC9190666 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.13559] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2021] [Accepted: 05/19/2022] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Bacterial communities in and on wild hosts are increasingly appreciated for their importance in host health. Through both direct and indirect interactions, bacteria lining vertebrate gut mucosa provide hosts protection against infectious pathogens, sometimes even in distal body regions through immune regulation. In house finches (Haemorhous mexicanus), the bacterial pathogen Mycoplasma gallisepticum (MG) causes conjunctivitis, with ocular inflammation mediated by pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines and infection triggering MG-specific antibodies. Here, we tested the role of gut bacteria in host responses to MG by using oral antibiotics to perturb bacteria in the gut of captive house finches prior to experimental inoculation with MG. We found no clear support for an impact of gut bacterial disruption on conjunctival pathology, MG load, or plasma antibody levels. However, there was a non-significant trend for birds with intact gut communities to have greater conjunctival pathology, suggesting a possible impact of gut bacteria on pro-inflammatory cytokine stimulation. Using 16S bacterial rRNA amplicon sequencing, we found dramatic differences in cloacal bacterial community composition between captive, wild-caught house finches in our experiment and free-living finches from the same population, with lower bacterial richness and core communities composed of fewer genera in captive finches. We hypothesize that captivity may have affected the strength of results in this experiment, necessitating further study with this consideration. The abundance of anthropogenic impacts on wildlife and their bacterial communities, alongside the emergence and spread of infectious diseases, highlights the importance of studies addressing the role of commensal bacteria in health and disease, and the consequences of gut bacterial shifts on wild hosts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chava L. Weitzman
- Department of Biological Sciences, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech), Blacksburg, VA, United States of America,Research Institute for the Environment and Livelihoods, Charles Darwin University, Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia
| | - Lisa K. Belden
- Department of Biological Sciences, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech), Blacksburg, VA, United States of America
| | - Meghan May
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of New England, Biddeford, ME, United States of America
| | - Marissa M. Langager
- Department of Biological Sciences, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech), Blacksburg, VA, United States of America
| | - Rami A. Dalloul
- Department of Poultry Science, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, United States of America
| | - Dana M. Hawley
- Department of Biological Sciences, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech), Blacksburg, VA, United States of America
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18
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Webb SE, Teullet S, Stothart MR. Growing and maintaining a network for early career researchers through the Animal Microbiome Research Group. Evol Anthropol 2022; 31:108-111. [PMID: 35150176 DOI: 10.1002/evan.21941] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2022] [Accepted: 01/14/2022] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Shasta E Webb
- Department of Anthropology and Archaeology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | | | - Mason R Stothart
- Department of Ecosystem and Public Health, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
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