Direct Evidence That Sunbirds’ Gut Microbiota Degrades Floral Nectar’s Toxic Alkaloids

Orange-tufted sunbirds (Cinnyris osea) feed on the nectar of the tobacco tree (Nicotiana glauca) which contains toxic pyridine alkaloids characterized by high concentrations of anabasine and much lower concentrations of nicotine. We aimed at determining whether the gut microbiota of sunbirds harbors...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Mohanraj Gunasekaran, Beny Trabelcy, Ido Izhaki, Malka Halpern
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2021-03-01
Series:Frontiers in Microbiology
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2021.639808/full