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Characterisation of the gut microbial community of rhesus macaques in high-altitude environments
- Source :
- BMC Microbiology, Vol 20, Iss 1, Pp 1-16 (2020), BMC Microbiology
- Publication Year :
- 2020
- Publisher :
- Research Square Platform LLC, 2020.
-
Abstract
- Background The mammal intestinal microbiota is involved in various physiological processes and plays a key role in host environment adaption. However, for non-human primates (NHPs), little is known about their gut microbial community in high-altitude environments and even less about their adaption to such habitats. We characterised the gut microbial community of rhesus macaques from multiple high-altitude environments and compared it to those of low-altitude populations. Results We collected faecal samples of rhesus macaques from four high-altitude populations (above 3000 m) and three low-altitude populations (below 500 m). By calculating the alpha diversity index, we found that high-altitude populations exhibited a higher diversity. Statistical analysis of beta diversity indicated significant differences between high- and low-altitude populations. Significant differences were also detected at the phylum and family levels. At the phylum level, the high-altitude gut microbial community was dominated by Firmicutes (63.42%), while at low altitudes, it was dominated by Bacteroidetes (47.4%). At the family level, the high-altitude population was dominated by Ruminococcaceae (36.2%), while the low-altitude one was dominated by Prevotellaceae (39.6%). Some families, such as Christensenellaceae and Rikenellaceae, were consistently higher abundant in all high-altitude populations. We analysed the overlap of operational taxonomic units (OTUs) in high-altitude populations and determined their core OTUs (shared by all four high-altitude populations). However, when compared with the low-altitude core OTUs, only 65% were shared, suggesting a divergence in core OTUs. Function prediction indicated a significant difference in gene copy number of 35 level-2 pathways between high- and low-altitude populations; 29 of them were higher in high altitudes, especially in membrane transport and carbohydrate metabolism. Conclusions The gut microbial community of high-altitude rhesus macaques was significantly distinct from that of low-altitude populations in terms of diversity, composition and function. High-altitude populations were dominated by Firmicutes and Ruminococcace, while in low-altitude populations, Bacteroidetes and Prevotellaceae were dominant. The difference in gut microbiota between these two populations may be caused by differences in host diet, environmental temperature and oxygen pressure. These differentiated gut microbial microorganisms may play a critical role in the adaptive evolution of rhesus macaques to high-altitude environments.
- Subjects :
- DNA, Bacterial
Microbiology (medical)
Gut microbial community
Rikenellaceae
Firmicutes
Population
Gene Dosage
Beta diversity
lcsh:QR1-502
Zoology
Gut flora
Prevotellaceae
DNA, Ribosomal
Microbiology
lcsh:Microbiology
Feces
03 medical and health sciences
Bacterial Proteins
RNA, Ribosomal, 16S
Rhesus macaque
Animals
education
Phylogeny
030304 developmental biology
0303 health sciences
education.field_of_study
Bacteria
biology
030306 microbiology
Altitude
High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing
Bacteroidetes
Biodiversity
Sequence Analysis, DNA
biology.organism_classification
Macaca mulatta
Gastrointestinal Microbiome
Alpha diversity
16S rRNA gene
High-altitude environment
Research Article
Subjects
Details
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- BMC Microbiology, Vol 20, Iss 1, Pp 1-16 (2020), BMC Microbiology
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....cdcfbf7f4e0f386524b448d690abc9c5