Astrovirus infection alters gut microbial communities in a widespread neotropical bat across human-modified...

Astroviruses are becoming a growing concern in public and veterinary health. In humans, astrovirus infections can cause severe diarrhea and may lead to neuropathological encephalitis, whereas in wildlife, these enteropathogenic viral infections often lack overt symptoms and thus remain unnoticed. Yet their close interaction with the host's gastrointestinal microbiome might drive cascading effects with disadvantages for host health. Bats harbor many zoonotic viruses without showing signs of disease, and many species move freely along the gradient from pristine to agricultural landscapes. To better understand the impact of astrovirus (AstV) infection under a One Health framework, we investigated the gut microbiome of naturally AstV-infected Seba's short-tailed bats (Carollia perspicillata, n = 234) inhabiting old-growth lowland forests or forest fragments embedded in an agricultural matrix in Panama. AstV prevalence was higher in forest fragments. We observed that AstV infection is associated with a shift in microbial beta but not alpha diversity, which points towards the replacement of common gut microbial taxa when infected. Indeed, potentially beneficial bacteria, such as Lactococcus, decreased in abundance, whereas potentially pathogenic bacteria from the Helicobacter genus increased in AstV-positive bats. Two Helicobacter haplotypes closely related to avian Helicobacter species were identified. We conclude that even though the impact of infection on the microbiome was not amplified in forest fragments, the higher infection likelihood in landscapes altered by humans implies more frequent or prolonged health repercussions for bats.