Host-Specific Differences in Gut Microbiota Between Cricetulus barabensis and Phodopus sungorus

Area of Science:

• Microbiology
• Animal Ecology
• Genomics

Background:

• The gut microbiota is crucial for host health and physiological processes in animals.
• Host-specific and environmental factors shape gut microbial communities.
• Understanding host-driven differences in gut microbiota is key to explaining host life history strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the gut microbiota of striped hamsters (Cricetulus barabensis) and Djungarian hamsters (Phodopus sungorus) under identical housing conditions.
• To identify host-dominated differences in gut microbial community structure and function between these two hamster species.
• To explore the relationship between gut microbiota composition and host lifestyle variations.

Main Methods:

• Fecal sample collection from striped and Djungarian hamsters housed under controlled conditions.
• 16S rRNA gene sequencing to analyze gut microbial community composition.
• Bioinformatic analyses including Shannon diversity index, linear discriminant analysis effect size (LEfSe), amplicon sequence variant (ASV) analysis, co-occurrence network construction, and neutral community modeling.

Main Results:

• Striped hamsters exhibited a higher Shannon diversity index compared to Djungarian hamsters.
• LEfSe analysis revealed distinct bacterial taxa enrichment: Lachnospiraceae, Muribaculum, and Oscillibacter in striped hamsters; Erysipelotrichaceae and Turicibacter in Djungarian hamsters.
• Eight out of the top 10 ASVs showed significant abundance differences between the species.
• Gut bacterial co-occurrence networks indicated lower complexity (fewer positive correlations and lower average degree) in striped hamsters.
• Neutral community modeling showed a higher R-squared value for the gut microbial community of striped hamsters.

Conclusions:

• Significant differences exist in the gut microbiota composition and structure between striped and Djungarian hamsters.
• These microbial disparities are associated with variations in host lifestyle, suggesting a co-evolutionary relationship.
• The study provides valuable insights into the intricate connections between rodent hosts and their gut microbiomes, impacting our understanding of host-microbe interactions.