Variation of Gut Microbiome in Free-Ranging Female Tibetan Macaques (<i>Macaca Thibetana</i>) across Different Reproductive States
The gut microbiome is expected to adapt to the varying energetic and nutritional pressures in females of different reproductive states. Changes in the gut microbiome may lead to varying nutrient utilizing efficiency in pregnant and lactating female primates. In this study, we examined variation in t...
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doaj-0653337f3bad4dc1af550eaebb8e0e6d2020-12-28T00:01:46ZengMDPI AGAnimals2076-26152021-12-0111393910.3390/ani11010039Variation of Gut Microbiome in Free-Ranging Female Tibetan Macaques (<i>Macaca Thibetana</i>) across Different Reproductive StatesBinghua Sun0Xiaojuan Xu1Yingna Xia2Yumei Cheng3Shuxin Mao4Xingjia Xiang5Dongpo Xia6Xi Wang7Jinhua Li8School of Resource and Environmental Engineering, Anhui University, Hefei 230601, ChinaSchool of Life Science, Hefei Normal University, Hefei 230601, ChinaSchool of Resource and Environmental Engineering, Anhui University, Hefei 230601, ChinaSchool of Resource and Environmental Engineering, Anhui University, Hefei 230601, ChinaSchool of Resource and Environmental Engineering, Anhui University, Hefei 230601, ChinaSchool of Resource and Environmental Engineering, Anhui University, Hefei 230601, ChinaInternational Collaborative Research Center for Huangshan Biodiversity andTibetan Macaque Behavioral Ecology, Anhui University, Hefei 230601, ChinaSchool of Resource and Environmental Engineering, Anhui University, Hefei 230601, ChinaSchool of Resource and Environmental Engineering, Anhui University, Hefei 230601, ChinaThe gut microbiome is expected to adapt to the varying energetic and nutritional pressures in females of different reproductive states. Changes in the gut microbiome may lead to varying nutrient utilizing efficiency in pregnant and lactating female primates. In this study, we examined variation in the gut bacterial community composition of wild female Tibetan macaques (<i>Macaca thibetana</i>) across different reproductive states (cycling, pregnancy and lactation). Fecal samples (n = 25) were collected from ten adult females harvested across different reproductive states. Gut microbial community composition and potential functions were assessed using 16 S rRNA gene sequences. We found significant changes in gut bacterial taxonomic composition, structure and their potential functions in different reproductive states of our study species. In particular, the relative abundance of Proteobacteria increased significantly during pregnancy and lactation. In addition, the relative abundance of Succinivibrionaceae and <i>Succinivibrio</i> (Succinivibrionaceae) were overrepresented in pregnant females, whereas Bifidobacteriaceae and <i>Bifidobacterium</i> (Bifidobacteriaceae) were overrepresented in lactating females. Furthermore, the relative abundance of predicted functional genes of several metabolic pathways related to host’s energy and nutrition, such as metabolism of carbohydrates, cofactors and vitamins, glycans and other amino acids, were enriched in pregnancy and lactation. Our findings suggest that changes in the gut microbiome may play an important role in meeting the energetic needs of pregnant and lactating Tibetan macaques. Future studies of the “microbial reproductive ecology” of primates that incorporate food availability, reproductive seasonality, female reproductive physiology and gut inflammation are warranted.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/11/1/39gut microbiomefemale reproductionProteobacteriaTibetan macaque |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Binghua Sun Xiaojuan Xu Yingna Xia Yumei Cheng Shuxin Mao Xingjia Xiang Dongpo Xia Xi Wang Jinhua Li |
spellingShingle |
Binghua Sun Xiaojuan Xu Yingna Xia Yumei Cheng Shuxin Mao Xingjia Xiang Dongpo Xia Xi Wang Jinhua Li Variation of Gut Microbiome in Free-Ranging Female Tibetan Macaques (<i>Macaca Thibetana</i>) across Different Reproductive States Animals gut microbiome female reproduction Proteobacteria Tibetan macaque |
author_facet |
Binghua Sun Xiaojuan Xu Yingna Xia Yumei Cheng Shuxin Mao Xingjia Xiang Dongpo Xia Xi Wang Jinhua Li |
author_sort |
Binghua Sun |
title |
Variation of Gut Microbiome in Free-Ranging Female Tibetan Macaques (<i>Macaca Thibetana</i>) across Different Reproductive States |
title_short |
Variation of Gut Microbiome in Free-Ranging Female Tibetan Macaques (<i>Macaca Thibetana</i>) across Different Reproductive States |
title_full |
Variation of Gut Microbiome in Free-Ranging Female Tibetan Macaques (<i>Macaca Thibetana</i>) across Different Reproductive States |
title_fullStr |
Variation of Gut Microbiome in Free-Ranging Female Tibetan Macaques (<i>Macaca Thibetana</i>) across Different Reproductive States |
title_full_unstemmed |
Variation of Gut Microbiome in Free-Ranging Female Tibetan Macaques (<i>Macaca Thibetana</i>) across Different Reproductive States |
title_sort |
variation of gut microbiome in free-ranging female tibetan macaques (<i>macaca thibetana</i>) across different reproductive states |
publisher |
MDPI AG |
series |
Animals |
issn |
2076-2615 |
publishDate |
2021-12-01 |
description |
The gut microbiome is expected to adapt to the varying energetic and nutritional pressures in females of different reproductive states. Changes in the gut microbiome may lead to varying nutrient utilizing efficiency in pregnant and lactating female primates. In this study, we examined variation in the gut bacterial community composition of wild female Tibetan macaques (<i>Macaca thibetana</i>) across different reproductive states (cycling, pregnancy and lactation). Fecal samples (n = 25) were collected from ten adult females harvested across different reproductive states. Gut microbial community composition and potential functions were assessed using 16 S rRNA gene sequences. We found significant changes in gut bacterial taxonomic composition, structure and their potential functions in different reproductive states of our study species. In particular, the relative abundance of Proteobacteria increased significantly during pregnancy and lactation. In addition, the relative abundance of Succinivibrionaceae and <i>Succinivibrio</i> (Succinivibrionaceae) were overrepresented in pregnant females, whereas Bifidobacteriaceae and <i>Bifidobacterium</i> (Bifidobacteriaceae) were overrepresented in lactating females. Furthermore, the relative abundance of predicted functional genes of several metabolic pathways related to host’s energy and nutrition, such as metabolism of carbohydrates, cofactors and vitamins, glycans and other amino acids, were enriched in pregnancy and lactation. Our findings suggest that changes in the gut microbiome may play an important role in meeting the energetic needs of pregnant and lactating Tibetan macaques. Future studies of the “microbial reproductive ecology” of primates that incorporate food availability, reproductive seasonality, female reproductive physiology and gut inflammation are warranted. |
topic |
gut microbiome female reproduction Proteobacteria Tibetan macaque |
url |
https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/11/1/39 |
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