Individuality and stability of the koala ( Phascolarctos cinereus ) faecal microbiota through time

PeerJ

article

Raphael Eisenhofer¹  Kylie L. Brice³  Michaela DJ Blyton⁴  Scott E. Bevins³  Kellie Leigh⁵  Brajesh K. Singh³  Kristofer M. Helgen⁷  Ian Hough⁹  Christopher B. Daniels⁹  Natasha Speight^1,10  Ben D. Moore³ 

[1] School of Biological Sciences, The University of Adelaide;Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage, The University of Adelaide;Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment, Western Sydney University;School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences, Faculty of Science, University of Queensland;Science for Wildlife Ltd;Global Centre for Land Based Innovation, Western Sydney University;Australian Museum Research Institute;Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage, University of New South Wales;Koala Life Foundation, Cleland Wildlife Park, Department for Environment and Water;School of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, The University of Adelaide

关键词: Time series;    Longitudinal;    16S rRNA;    Marsupial;    Eucalyptus;    Core microbiota;    Caecum fermenter;    Arboreal folivore;    Koala;    Australia;   

DOI  :  10.7717/peerj.14598

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: Inra

【 摘 要 】

Gut microbiota studies often rely on a single sample taken per individual, representing a snapshot in time. However, we know that gut microbiota composition in many animals exhibits intra-individual variation over the course of days to months. Such temporal variations can be a confounding factor in studies seeking to compare the gut microbiota of different wild populations, or to assess the impact of medical/veterinary interventions. To date, little is known about the variability of the koala (Phascolarctos cinereus) gut microbiota through time. Here, we characterise the gut microbiota from faecal samples collected at eight timepoints over a month for a captive population of South Australian koalas (n individuals = 7), and monthly over 7 months for a wild population of New South Wales koalas (n individuals = 5). Using 16S rRNA gene sequencing, we found that microbial diversity was stable over the course of days to months. Each koala had a distinct faecal microbiota composition which in the captive koalas was stable across days. The wild koalas showed more variation across months, although each individual still maintained a distinct microbial composition. Per koala, an average of 57 (±16) amplicon sequence variants (ASVs) were detected across all time points; these ASVs accounted for an average of 97% (±1.9%) of the faecal microbial community per koala. The koala faecal microbiota exhibits stability over the course of days to months. Such knowledge will be useful for future studies comparing koala populations and developing microbiota interventions for this regionally endangered marsupial.

【 授权许可】

CC BY