Comparison of gut microbiome in the Chinese mud snail (Cipangopaludina chinensis) and the invasive golden apple snail (Pomacea canaliculata)

Abstract

Background Gut microbiota play a critical role in nutrition absorption and environmental adaptation and can affect the biological characteristics of host animals. The invasive golden apple snail (Pomacea canaliculata) and native Chinese mud snail (Cipangopaludina chinensis) are two sympatric freshwater snails with similar ecological niche in southern China. However, gut microbiota comparison of interspecies remains unclear. Comparing the difference of gut microbiota between the invasive snail P. canaliculata and native snail C. chinensis could provide new insight into the invasion mechanism of P.canaliculata at the microbial level. Methods Gut samples from 20 golden apple snails and 20 Chinese mud snails from wild freshwater habitats were collected and isolated. The 16S rRNA gene V3–V4 region of the gut microbiota was analyzed using high throughput Illumina sequencing. Results The gut microbiota dominantly composed of Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes and Epsilonbacteraeota at phylum level in golden apple snail. Only Proteobacteria was the dominant phylum in Chinese mud snail. Alpha diversity analysis (Shannon and Simpson indices) showed there were no significant differences in gut microbial diversity, but relative abundances of the two groups differed significantly (P < 0.05). Beta diversity analysis (Bray Curtis and weighted UniFrac distance) showed marked differences in the gut microbiota structure (P < 0.05). Unique or high abundance microbial taxa were more abundant in the invasive snail compared to the native form. Functional prediction analysis indicated that the relative abundances of functions differed significantly regarding cofactor prosthetic group electron carrier and vitamin biosynthesis, amino acid biosynthesis, and nucleoside and nucleotide biosynthesis (P < 0.05). These results suggest an enhanced potential to adapt to new habitats in the invasive snail.

Effects of cadmium exposure on intestinal microflora of Cipangopaludina cathayensis

“…The results are consistent with the findings of recent studies in other Cipangopaludina species ( Zhou K. Q. et al, 2022 ; Zhou Z. H. et al, 2022 ). The other two dominant phyla were Bacteroidetes and Firmicutes, which are consistent with the findings of previous studies that have reported that the major bacterial phyla in the gut of aquatic animals, including fish, crustaceans, and mollusks are Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, and Firmicutes ( Chang et al, 2019 ; Liu et al, 2019 ; Wang et al, 2020b ; Zhang Y. et al, 2020 ; Zhou Z. H. et al, 2022 ). However, the two phyla were not dominant in a closely related species, Cipangopaludina chinensis ( Zhou K. Q. et al, 2022 ; Zhou Z. H. et al, 2022 ).…”

“…The other two dominant phyla were Bacteroidetes and Firmicutes, which are consistent with the findings of previous studies that have reported that the major bacterial phyla in the gut of aquatic animals, including fish, crustaceans, and mollusks are Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, and Firmicutes ( Chang et al, 2019 ; Liu et al, 2019 ; Wang et al, 2020b ; Zhang Y. et al, 2020 ; Zhou Z. H. et al, 2022 ). However, the two phyla were not dominant in a closely related species, Cipangopaludina chinensis ( Zhou K. Q. et al, 2022 ; Zhou Z. H. et al, 2022 ). The result implies that although the two species are closely related, they may have different strategies of responding to Cd stress.…”

Characterization of Gut Microbiome in the Mud Snail Cipangopaludina cathayensis in Response to High-Temperature Stress

“…In this study, Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, and Firmicutes were the three dominant phyla across all treatment groups, which is consistent with previous findings in mollusks [ 47 , 48 ]. However, Bacteroidetes and Firmicutes were not the dominant phyla in a closely related species, Cipangopaludina chinensis [ 48 , 49 ].…”

“…In this study, Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, and Firmicutes were the three dominant phyla across all treatment groups, which is consistent with previous findings in mollusks [ 47 , 48 ]. However, Bacteroidetes and Firmicutes were not the dominant phyla in a closely related species, Cipangopaludina chinensis [ 48 , 49 ]. This inconsistency implies that although the two species are closely related, they may have different strategies of responding to high-temperature stress [ 28 , 29 , 30 ].…”

Seasonal variation in structure and function of gut microbiota in Pomacea canaliculata

“…Significant differences were found in the structure of gut microbiota among female, male, and juvenile groups, suggesting the gut microbiota of P. canaliculata has been affected by the developmental stages (Chen et al, 2021 ). Zhou et al ( 2022 ) investigated difference of gut microbiota between P. canaliculata and native snail Cipangopaludina chinensis . The results found that there were marked differences in the gut microbiota structure between P. canaliculata and C. chinensis .…”