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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Oct 15, 2025

Visualization of Gut Microbiota-host Interactions via Fluorescence In Situ Hybridization, Lectin Staining, and Imaging

Visualization of Gut Microbiota-host Interactions via Fluorescence In Situ Hybridization, Lectin Staining, and Imaging

Published on: July 9, 2021

The microbiome impacts host hybridization and speciation.

Asia K Miller^1,2, Camille S Westlake^1,2, Karissa L Cross^1,2

¹Vanderbilt University, Department of Biological Sciences, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America.

|October 26, 2021

Summary

Microbial symbiosis and animal speciation are key to biodiversity. Merging these fields reveals how microbes influence reproductive isolation and hybridization, marking a new phase in evolutionary biology research.

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Area of Science:

Evolutionary Biology
Microbiology
Genetics

Background:

Microbial symbiosis and speciation are fundamental to biodiversity.
Research merging these fields remains underdeveloped.
Microorganisms' role in animal speciation was proposed a century ago.

Purpose of the Study:

To synthesize exemplar cases of microbial community and endosymbiont influence on animal hybridization.
To explore the reciprocal effects of animal hybridization on microbial communities.
To highlight the potential for integrating microbiome studies into reproductive isolation research.

Main Methods:

Literature review and synthesis of existing case studies.
Analysis of exemplar cases demonstrating microbial impact on hybridization.
Conceptual framework development for microbiome-inclusive speciation.

Main Results:

Identified diverse cases where microbes affect animal hybridization and vice versa.
Demonstrated that microbial communities can act as functional components of reproductive isolation barriers.
Highlighted the broad applicability across various animal taxa and microbial types.

Conclusions:

The integration of microbiome research into the study of speciation is crucial.
Microbial symbiosis significantly contributes to reproductive isolation and the formation of new species.
The evidence supporting the impact of microorganisms on animal speciation has reached a critical point, warranting further investigation.