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Bamboo Specialists from Two Mammalian Orders (Primates, Carnivora) Share a High Number of Low-Abundance Gut Microbes.

Publication ,  Journal Article
McKenney, EA; Maslanka, M; Rodrigo, A; Yoder, AD
Published in: Microbial ecology
July 2018

Bamboo specialization is one of the most extreme examples of convergent herbivory, yet it is unclear how this specific high-fiber diet might selectively shape the composition of the gut microbiome compared to host phylogeny. To address these questions, we used deep sequencing to investigate the nature and comparative impact of phylogenetic and dietary selection for specific gut microbial membership in three bamboo specialists-the bamboo lemur (Hapalemur griseus, Primates: Lemuridae), giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca, Carnivora: Ursidae), and red panda (Ailurus fulgens, Carnivora: Musteloideadae), as well as two phylogenetic controls-the ringtail lemur (Lemur catta) and the Asian black bear (Ursus thibetanus). We detected significantly higher Shannon diversity in the bamboo lemur (10.029) compared to both the giant panda (8.256; p = 0.0001936) and the red panda (6.484; p = 0.0000029). We also detected significantly enriched bacterial taxa that distinguished each species. Our results complement previous work in finding that phylogeny predominantly governs high-level microbiome community structure. However, we also find that 48 low-abundance OTUs are shared among bamboo specialists, compared to only 8 OTUs shared by the bamboo lemur and its sister species, the ringtail lemur (Lemur catta, a generalist). Our results suggest that deep sequencing is necessary to detect low-abundance bacterial OTUs, which may be specifically adapted to a high-fiber diet. These findings provide a more comprehensive framework for understanding the evolution and ecology of the microbiome as well as the host.

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Published In

Microbial ecology

DOI

EISSN

1432-184X

ISSN

0095-3628

Publication Date

July 2018

Volume

76

Issue

1

Start / End Page

272 / 284

Related Subject Headings

  • Ursidae
  • Species Specificity
  • Sequence Analysis, DNA
  • RNA, Ribosomal, 16S
  • Primates
  • Phylogeny
  • Microbiology
  • Host Microbial Interactions
  • Herbivory
  • Gastrointestinal Microbiome
 

Citation

APA
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MLA
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McKenney, E. A., Maslanka, M., Rodrigo, A., & Yoder, A. D. (2018). Bamboo Specialists from Two Mammalian Orders (Primates, Carnivora) Share a High Number of Low-Abundance Gut Microbes. Microbial Ecology, 76(1), 272–284. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00248-017-1114-8
McKenney, Erin A., Michael Maslanka, Allen Rodrigo, and Anne D. Yoder. “Bamboo Specialists from Two Mammalian Orders (Primates, Carnivora) Share a High Number of Low-Abundance Gut Microbes.Microbial Ecology 76, no. 1 (July 2018): 272–84. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00248-017-1114-8.
McKenney EA, Maslanka M, Rodrigo A, Yoder AD. Bamboo Specialists from Two Mammalian Orders (Primates, Carnivora) Share a High Number of Low-Abundance Gut Microbes. Microbial ecology. 2018 Jul;76(1):272–84.
McKenney, Erin A., et al. “Bamboo Specialists from Two Mammalian Orders (Primates, Carnivora) Share a High Number of Low-Abundance Gut Microbes.Microbial Ecology, vol. 76, no. 1, July 2018, pp. 272–84. Epmc, doi:10.1007/s00248-017-1114-8.
McKenney EA, Maslanka M, Rodrigo A, Yoder AD. Bamboo Specialists from Two Mammalian Orders (Primates, Carnivora) Share a High Number of Low-Abundance Gut Microbes. Microbial ecology. 2018 Jul;76(1):272–284.
Journal cover image

Published In

Microbial ecology

DOI

EISSN

1432-184X

ISSN

0095-3628

Publication Date

July 2018

Volume

76

Issue

1

Start / End Page

272 / 284

Related Subject Headings

  • Ursidae
  • Species Specificity
  • Sequence Analysis, DNA
  • RNA, Ribosomal, 16S
  • Primates
  • Phylogeny
  • Microbiology
  • Host Microbial Interactions
  • Herbivory
  • Gastrointestinal Microbiome