scholarly journals Sympatric Yaks and Plateau Pikas Promote Microbial Diversity and Similarity by the Mutual Utilization of Gut Microbiota

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (9) ◽  
pp. 1890
Author(s):  
Haibo Fu ◽  
Liangzhi Zhang ◽  
Chao Fan ◽  
Wenjing Li ◽  
Chuanfa Liu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gut Microbiota ◽  
Microbial Diversity ◽  
Horizontal Transmission ◽  
Population Expansion ◽  
Underlying Mechanism ◽  
Degradation Pathways ◽  
Plateau Pika ◽  
Ochotona Curzoniae ◽  
Heparin Sulfate ◽  
Xenobiotic Biodegradation

Interactions between species provide the basis for understanding coexisting mechanisms. The plateau pika (Ochotona curzoniae) and the yak (Bos grunniens) are considered competitors because they have shared habitats and consumed similar food on the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau for more than 1 million years. Interestingly, the population density of plateau pikas increases with yak population expansion and subsequent overgrazing. To reveal the underlying mechanism, we sequenced the fecal microbial 16S rDNA from both sympatric and allopatric pikas and yaks. Our results indicated that sympatry increased both gut microbial diversity and similarity between pikas and yaks. The abundance of Firmicutes, Proteobacteria, Cyanobacteria, and Tenericutes decreased, while that of Verrucomicrobia increased in sympatric pikas. As for sympatric yaks, Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, and Spirochaetes significantly increased, while Cyanobacteria, Euryarchaeota, and Verrucomicrobia significantly decreased. In sympatry, plateau pikas acquired 2692 OTUs from yaks, and yaks obtained 453 OTUs from pikas. The predominant horizontally transmitted bacteria were Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, Verrucomicrobia, and Proteobacteria. These bacteria enhanced the enrichment of pathways related to prebiotics and immunity for pikas, such as heparin sulfate, heparin, chitin disaccharide, chondroitin-sulfate-ABC, and chondroitin-AC degradation pathways. In yaks, the horizontally transmitted bacteria enhanced pathways related to hepatoprotection, xenobiotic biodegradation, and detoxification. Our results suggest that horizontal transmission is a process of selection, and pikas and yaks tend to develop reciprocity through the horizontal transmission of gut microbiota.

scholarly journals The plant secondary compound swainsonine reshapes gut microbiota in plateau pikas (Ochotona curzoniae)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shien Ren ◽  
Chao Fan ◽  
Liangzhi Zhang ◽  
Xianjiang Tang ◽  
Haibo Fu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gut Microbiota ◽  
Artificial Diet ◽  
Alpha Diversity ◽  
Term Treatment ◽  
Short Term Treatment ◽  
Ochotona Curzoniae ◽  
Rdna Sequencing ◽  
Long Term Treatment ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Herbivorous Mammals

Abstract Plants produce various plant secondary compounds (PSCs) to deter the foraging of herbivorous mammals. However, little is known about whether PSCs can reshape gut microbiota and promote gut homeostasis of hosts. Using 16S rDNA sequencing to investigate the effects of PSCs on the gut microbiota of small herbivorous mammals, we studied plateau pikas (Ochotona curzoniae) fed diets containing swainsonine (SW) extracted from Oxytropis ochrocephala. Our results showed that both long- and short-term treatment of a single artificial diet in the laboratory significantly reduced alpha diversity and significantly affected beta diversity, core bacteria abundance, and bacterial functions in pikas. After SW was added to the artificial diet, the alpha diversity significantly increased in the long-term treatment, and core bacteria (e.g., Akkermansiaceae) with altered relative abundances in the two treatments showed no significant difference compared with pikas in the wild. The complexity of the co-occurrence network structure was reduced in the artificial diet, but it increased after SW was added in both treatments. Further, the abundances of bacteria related to altered alanine, aspartate, and glutamate metabolism in the artificial diet were restored in response to SW. SW further decreased the concentration of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) in both treatments. Our results suggest that PSCs play a key role in regulating gut microbiota community and intestinal homeostasis, thereby maintaining host health. Key points • Swainsonine improves the intestinal bacterial diversity of plateau pikas. • Swainsonine promotes the recovery of core bacterial abundances in the gut of plateau pikas. • Swainsonine promotes the restoration of intestinal bacterial functions of plateau pikas.

scholarly journals Effects of Psychotropics on the Microbiome in Patients With Depression and Anxiety: Considerations in a Naturalistic Clinical Setting

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yoshihiro Tomizawa ◽  
Shunya Kurokawa ◽  
Daiki Ishii ◽  
Katsuma Miyaho ◽  
Chiharu Ishii ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gut Microbiota ◽  
Microbial Diversity ◽  
Depressive Disorders ◽  
Alpha Diversity ◽  
16S Rrna Gene Sequencing ◽  
Shannon Index ◽  
Rrna Gene ◽  
Depression And Anxiety ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Whole Tree

Abstract Background The antibacterial effects of psychotropics may be part of their pharmacological effects when treating depression. However, limited studies have focused on gut microbiota in relation to prescribed medication. Method We longitudinally investigated the relationship between patients’ prescribed medications and intestinal bacterial diversity in a naturalistic treatment course for patients with major depressive disorders and anxiety disorders. Patients were recruited and their stool was collected at 3 time points during their usual psychiatric treatments. Gut microbiota were analyzed using 16S rRNA gene sequencing. We examined the impact of psychotropics (i.e., antidepressants, anxiolytics, antipsychotics) on their gut microbial diversity and functions. Results We collected 246 stool samples from 40 patients. Despite no differences in microbial diversity between medication groups at the baseline, over the course of treatment, phylogenic diversity whole-tree diversity decreased in patients on antipsychotics compared with patients without (P = .027), and beta diversity followed this trend. Based on a fixed-effect model, antipsychotics predicted microbial diversity; the higher doses correlated with less diversity based on the Shannon index and phylogenic diversity whole tree (estimate = −0.00254, SE = 0.000595, P < .0001; estimate = −0.02644, SE = 0.00833, P = .002, respectively). Conclusion Antipsychotics may play a role in decreasing the alpha diversity of the gut microbiome among patients with depression and anxiety, and our results indicate a relationship with medication dosage. Future studies are warranted and should consider patients’ types and doses of antipsychotics in order to further elucidate the mechanisms of gut-brain interactions in psychiatric disorders.

Modulation of gut microbiota and intestinal barrier function during alleviation of antibiotic-associated diarrhea with Rhizoma Zingiber officinale (Ginger) extract

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (12) ◽  
pp. 10839-10851
Author(s):  
Zhi-jie Ma ◽  
Huan-jun Wang ◽  
Xiao-jing Ma ◽  
Yue Li ◽  
Hong-jun Yang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gut Microbiota ◽  
Barrier Function ◽  
Intestinal Barrier ◽  
Zingiber Officinale ◽  
Underlying Mechanism ◽  
Intestinal Barrier Function ◽  
Ginger Extract ◽  
Beneficial Effects ◽  
Antibiotic Associated Diarrhea

Ginger extract showed beneficial effects on rats with antibiotic-associated diarrhea, and the underlying mechanism might be associated with the recovery of gut microbiota and intestinal barrier function.

scholarly journals Microbial Diversity Profiling of Gut Microbiota of Macropus giganteus Using Three Hypervariable Regions of the Bacterial 16S rRNA

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (8) ◽  
pp. 1721
Author(s):  
Christian O’Dea ◽  
Roger Huerlimann ◽  
Nicole Masters ◽  
Anna Kuballa ◽  
Cameron Veal ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
16S Rrna ◽  
Gut Microbiota ◽  
Microbial Diversity ◽  
Surface Waters ◽  
Bacterial Species ◽  
Rrna Gene ◽  
Faecal Contamination ◽  
Hypervariable Regions ◽  
Geographical Regions ◽  
V3 Region

Animal faecal contamination of surface waters poses a human health risk, as they may contain pathogenic bacteria or viruses. Of the numerous animal species residing along surface waterways in Australia, macropod species are a top contributor to wild animals’ faecal pollution load. We characterised the gut microbiota of 30 native Australian Eastern Grey Kangaroos from six geographical regions (five kangaroos from each region) within South East Queensland in order to establish their bacterial diversity and identify potential novel species-specific bacteria for the rapid detection of faecal contamination of surface waters by these animals. Using three hypervariable regions (HVRs) of the 16S rRNA gene (i.e., V1–V3, V3–V4, and V5–V6), for their effectiveness in delineating the gut microbial diversity, faecal samples from each region were pooled and microbial genomic DNA was extracted, sequenced, and analysed. Results indicated that V1-V3 yielded a higher taxa richness due to its larger target region (~480 bp); however, higher levels of unassigned taxa were observed using the V1-V3 region. In contrast, the V3–V4 HVR (~569 bp) attained a higher likelihood of a taxonomic hit identity to the bacterial species level, with a 5-fold decrease in unassigned taxa. There were distinct dissimilarities in beta diversity between the regions, with the V1-V3 region displaying the highest number of unique taxa (n = 42), followed by V3–V4 (n = 11) and V5–V6 (n = 8). Variations in the gut microbial diversity profiles of kangaroos from different regions were also observed, which indicates that environmental factors may impact the microbial development and, thus, the composition of the gut microbiome of these animals.

scholarly journals Altered Fecal Metabolites and Colonic Glycerophospholipids Were Associated With Abnormal Composition of Gut Microbiota in a Depression Model of Mice

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xue Gong ◽  
Cheng Huang ◽  
Xun Yang ◽  
Jianjun Chen ◽  
Juncai Pu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Correlation Analysis ◽  
Gut Microbiota ◽  
16S Rrna Gene Sequencing ◽  
Underlying Mechanism ◽  
Rrna Gene ◽  
Mice Model ◽  
Microbial Composition ◽  
Gas And Liquid Chromatography ◽  
Correlation Analysis Method ◽  
Rrna Gene Sequencing

The microbiota–gut–brain axis has been considered to play an important role in the development of depression, but the underlying mechanism remains unclear. The gastrointestinal tract is home to trillions of microbiota and the colon is considered an important site for the interaction between microbiota and host, but few studies have been conducted to evaluate the alterations in the colon. Accordingly, in this study, we established a chronic social defeated stress (CSDS) mice model of depression. We applied 16S rRNA gene sequencing to assess the gut microbial composition and gas and liquid chromatography–mass spectroscopy to identify fecal metabolites and colonic lipids, respectively. Meanwhile, we used Spearman’s correlation analysis method to evaluate the associations between the gut microbiota, fecal metabolites, colonic lipids, and behavioral index. In total, there were 20 bacterial taxa and 18 bacterial taxa significantly increased and decreased, respectively, in the CSDS mice. Further, microbial functional prediction demonstrated a disturbance of lipid, carbohydrate, and amino acid metabolism in the CSDS mice. We also found 20 differential fecal metabolites and 36 differential colonic lipids (in the category of glycerolipids, glycerophospholipids, and sphingolipids) in the CSDS mice. Moreover, correlation analysis showed that fecal metabolomic signature was associated with the alterations in the gut microbiota composition and colonic lipidomic profile. Of note, three lipids [PC(16:0/20:4), PG(22:6/22:6), and PI(18:0/20:3), all in the category of glycerophospholipids] were significantly associated with anxiety- and depression-like phenotypes in mice. Taken together, our results indicated that the gut microbiota might be involved in the pathogenesis of depression via influencing fecal metabolites and colonic glycerophospholipid metabolism.

scholarly journals Livestock grazing impacts on plateau pika (Ochotona curzoniae) vary by species identity

2019 ◽  
Vol 275 ◽  
pp. 23-31 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xincheng Li ◽  
Zhongnan Wang ◽  
Deli Wang ◽  
Ling Wang ◽  
Duofeng Pan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Livestock Grazing ◽  
Species Identity ◽  
Plateau Pika ◽  
Grazing Impacts ◽  
Ochotona Curzoniae

scholarly journals The Dysbiosis of Gut Microbiota Caused by Low-Dose Cadmium Aggravate the Injury of Mice Liver through Increasing Intestinal Permeability

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 211 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yehao Liu ◽  
Yuhui Li ◽  
Yuhong Xia ◽  
Kaiyong Liu ◽  
Lingling Ren ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gut Microbiota ◽  
Intestinal Permeability ◽  
Health Risks ◽  
Low Dose ◽  
Underlying Mechanism ◽  
Mice Liver ◽  
Hepatic Transcriptome ◽  
Cd Exposure ◽  
Gut Microbiota Composition

Cadmium (Cd), widely present in food and drinking water at low doses, can cause health risks. However, the mechanistic effects of long-term Cd exposure at low dose through dietary intake is poorly studied. The aim of this study is to elucidate whether the dysbiosis of gut microbiota caused by Cd at an environmental low dose can aggravate the injury of mice liver, and the possible mechanism is investigated. In order to explore the potential underlying mechanism, the analyses of the variation of gut microbiota composition, intestinal permeability, and hepatic transcriptome were conducted. Our results showed that gut microbiota was disturbed. The rise of intestinal permeability induced by the dysbiosis of gut microbiota resulted in more Cd ions accumulating in mice liver, but it could be restored partly through depleting gut microbiota by antibiotics cocktail. Transcriptomic analyses indicated that 162 genes were significantly differentially expressed including 59 up-regulated and 103 down-regulated in Cd treatment. These genes were involved in several important pathways. Our findings provide a better understanding about the health risks of cadmium in the environment.

scholarly journals Grazing Management Influences Gut Microbial Diversity of Livestock in the Same Area

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (10) ◽  
pp. 4160
Author(s):  
Pengfei Song ◽  
Wen Qin ◽  
YanGan Huang ◽  
Lei Wang ◽  
Zhenyuan Cai ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gut Microbiota ◽  
Microbial Diversity ◽  
Qaidam Basin ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Grazing Management ◽  
Important Indicator ◽  
Sheep And Goats ◽  
Free Range ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Healthy Growth

The composition of gut microbiota is closely related to health and nutrition of livestock. Research on the interaction between gut microbiota in livestock and grazing management strategies is unfortunately sparse. By studying the compositions of gut microbiota in sheep and goats in a single, mixed grazing population under the control of herdsman, as well as those of free-range camels in the same area of Qaidam Basin, we found that the composition of gut microbiota between sheep and goats showed no significant difference. However, there were significant differences between mixed group and camels at α- and β-diversities. We speculate that grazing management can shape gut microbial diversity indirectly. Mixed grazing under the control of herdsman lead to similarities in the diversity of gut microbiota among different species and limit their diversities of gut microbiota, which is not conducive to healthy growth of the host. On the contrary, free-range grazing is better for the diversity of gut microbiota. In order to sustainably manage populations of livestock, gut microbiota analysis may prove to be an important indicator for evaluating the merits of different grazing management strategies. Our results lay a foundation to improve the health of livestock and grazing management.

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