Gut microbiota diversity affects fish behaviour and is influenced by host genetics and early rearing conditions

The gut microbiota influences human and animal cognition and behaviour through its effects on the endocrine and immune systems. The microbiome-behaviour relationship may be especially relevant for fish, due to their diverse evolutionary history and potential implications for farming and conservation. Yet, there is limited research on the interaction between gut microbiome and behaviour in non-model fish. We manipulated the rearing environment and diet of fish from two inbred strains of the self-fertilizing mangrove killifish (Kryptolebias marmoratus) and assessed the effects on the gut microbiome and its interactions with anxiety-like behaviours. We found that microbiota composition and alpha diversity were significantly influenced by host genetics (strain), hatching mode (naturally or artificial dechorionation) and diet, but not by environmental enrichment. Fish activity level and inspections of a novel object were strongly associated with microbiota community composition and alpha diversity. The microbial taxa associated with differences in behaviour were dominated by Bacteroidales, potentially related to the production of metabolites affecting neural development. We suggest that the association between microbiome and fish behaviour could be an indirect effect of the modulation of the gut microbiota by host genetics and early rearing conditions, which could be affecting the production of microbial metabolites that interact with the fish physiology.