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Bottlenose Dolphin Tursiops truncatus Spermatozoa: Collection, Cryopreservation, and Heterologous In Vitro Fertilization
Published on: August 21, 2017
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The bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) faecal microbiota
Matteo Soverini1, Sara Quercia1, Barbara Biancani2
1Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, University of Bologna, via Belmeloro 6, I-40126 Bologna, Italy.
FEMS Microbiology Ecology
|March 11, 2016
Summary
Dolphin gut microbiota is unique, resembling marine fish, not terrestrial mammals. This adaptation aids their marine life and fish-eating diet, showing microbial convergence.
Area of Science:
- Marine Biology
- Microbiology
- Evolutionary Biology
Background:
- Cetaceans, like bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus), evolved from terrestrial mammals.
- Their adaptation to a marine environment and piscivorous diet is significant.
- While anatomical adaptations are known, physiological adaptations, including gut microbiota, are less understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore the fecal microbiota structure in bottlenose dolphins.
- To understand the adaptation of dolphin gut microbiota to their marine and piscivorous niche.
- To compare dolphin microbiota with terrestrial mammals and marine fish.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of fecal microbiota composition in nine adult bottlenose dolphins and one calf.
- Comparison of dolphin microbiota with existing data on marine fish and terrestrial mammals.
Main Results:
- Dolphins exhibit a unique gut microbiota profile within Mammalia.
- Their microbiota closely resembles that of carnivorous marine fishes.
- A breast-fed calf's microbiota showed distinct features, partially overlapping with its mother's milk.
Conclusions:
- Dolphin gut microbiota structure has converged with that of marine fishes.
- This convergence reflects adaptation to a marine niche and piscivorous diet.
- This challenges the concept of phylogenetic inertia in mammalian gut microbiota adaptation.
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