Gut microbiota adaptation to high altitude in indigenous animals

Ma, Yan; Ma, Shuang; Chang, Lan; Wang, Haijie; Ga, Qin; Ma, Lan; Bai, Zhenzhong; Shen, Yongyi; Ge, Ri‐Li

doi:10.1016/j.bbrc.2019.05.085

Cited by 50 publications

(42 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…On the other hand, genes enriched in E3 were mainly associated with the health of the gut flora (e.g., replication and repair in level 2, bacterial motility proteins in level 3). These functional pathways of the gut microbiota are usually related to detoxification [ 67 , 68 ], which confirms our conjecture about E3.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 86%

Enterotypes of the Gut Microbial Community and Their Response to Plant Secondary Compounds in Plateau Pikas

Fan

Zhang

et al. 2020

Microorganisms

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Animal gut microbiomes can be clustered into “enterotypes” characterized by an abundance of signature genera. The characteristic determinants, stability, and resilience of these community clusters remain poorly understood. We used plateau pika (Ochotona curzoniae) as a model and identified three enterotypes by 16S rDNA sequencing. Among the top 15 genera, 13 showed significantly different levels of abundance between the enterotypes combined with different microbial functions and distinct fecal short-chain fatty acids. We monitored changes in the microbial community associated with the transfer of plateau pikas from field to laboratory and observed that feeding them a single diet reduced microbial diversity, resulting in a single enterotype with an altered composition of the dominant bacteria. However, microbial diversity, an abundance of some changed dominant genera, and enterotypes were partially restored after adding swainsonine (a plant secondary compound found in the natural diet of plateau pikas) to the feed. These results provide strong evidence that gut microbial diversity and enterotypes are directly related to specific diet, thereby indicating that the formation of different enterotypes can help animals adapt to complex food conditions. Additionally, natural plant secondary compounds can maintain dominant bacteria and inter-individual differences of gut microbiota and promote the resilience of enterotypes in small herbivorous mammals.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 86%

Enterotypes of the Gut Microbial Community and Their Response to Plant Secondary Compounds in Plateau Pikas

Fan

Zhang

et al. 2020

Microorganisms

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“…Interestingly, these challenging conditions affect not only mammals, but also their commensal microbiota. The skin microbiome diversity and composition, which are associated with health in many species, were different in high‐altitude blue sheep (Sun et al ), Tibetan sheep (Ma et al ), humans and pigs compared with lowland individuals, with unique taxa known as extremophiles that are only found at high altitudes (Zeng et al ).…”

Section: Effects Of High Altitude On the Mammalian Body And Physiologmentioning

confidence: 99%

Selection signatures for high‐altitude adaptation in ruminants

Friedrich

Wiener

2020

Animal Genetics

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Summary High‐altitude areas are important socio‐economical habitats with ruminants serving as a major source of food and commodities for humans. Living at high altitude, however, is extremely challenging, predominantly due to the exposure to hypoxic conditions, but also because of cold temperatures and limited feed for livestock. To survive in high‐altitude environments over the long term, ruminants have evolved adaptation strategies, e.g. physiological and morphological modifications, which allow them to cope with these harsh conditions. Identification of such selection signatures in ruminants may contribute to more informed breeding decisions, and thus improved productivity. Moreover, studying the genetic background of altitude adaptation in ruminants provides insights into a common molecular basis across species and thus a better understanding of the physiological basis of this adaptation. In this paper, we review the major effects of high altitude on the mammalian body and highlight some of the most important short‐term (coping) and genetically evolved (adaptation) physiological modifications. We then discuss the genetic architecture of altitude adaptation and target genes that show evidence of being under selection based on recent studies in various species, with a focus on ruminants. The yak is presented as an interesting native species that has adapted to the high‐altitude regions of Tibet. Finally, we conclude with implications and challenges of selection signature studies on altitude adaptation in general. We found that the number of studies on genetic mechanisms that enable altitude adaptation in ruminants is growing, with a strong focus on identifying selection signatures, and hypothesise that the investigation of genetic data from multiple species and regions will contribute greatly to the understanding of the genetic basis of altitude adaptation.

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“…After being fed a diet of a rotating fruit and vegetable mix, V. variegata and L. catta had similar microbial structures [49]. Several studies on the effect of altitude on rumen microbiota showed that Christensenellaceae R7, Succiniclasticum and Ruminococcaceae highly corrected with altitude [35,50]. These bacteria could secrete various enzymes and be associated with food efficiency [51][52][53].…”

Section: The Role Of the Diet In Rumen Microbiota Of Goats And Sheepmentioning

confidence: 99%

Diversity and Composition of Rumen Bacteria, Fungi, and Protozoa in Goats and Sheep Living in the Same High-Altitude Pasture

Suo

Zhang

et al. 2020

Animals

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Environmental adaptation of ruminants was highly related to microbiota in the rumen. To investigate the diversity and composition of bacteria, fungi, and protozoa in the rumen of high-altitude animals, amplicon gene sequencing was performed using rumen fluid samples derived from both Tibetan goats and sheep at the same pasture in a highland (altitude > 4800 m). Between these two species, the ruminal bacteria and fungi were significantly different at multiple taxonomic levels. The alpha diversity of bacteria was significantly high in goats (p < 0.05). One hundred and sixty-four and 29 Operational Taxonomy Units (OTUs) with significant differences were detected in bacteria and fungi, respectively. The abundance of bacteria, fungi, and protozoa in the rumen was characterized at multiple taxonomic levels, and we determined that Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, Neocallimastigomycota, and Ciliophora were the most abundant bacteria, fungi, and protozoa. The family Neocallimastigaceae and the genus Metadinium had cellulose degradation capacity in the rumen with high abundance, thereby, suggesting that fungi and protozoa played an essential role in rumen fermentation. In addition, by comparing microbiota in the rumen of goats and sheep it was found, that the fiber-degrading fungi genus (Cyllamyces) was increased in the rumen of sheep (p < 0.05) whereas VFA-producing bacteria (Saccharofermentans and Lachnospiraceae_XPB1014) were increased in the rumen of goats (p < 0.05). Interestingly, in the rumen, no differences in protozoa were observed between goats and sheep (p > 0.05). Furthermore, when compared to sheep, level of acetic acid, propionic acid, and total volatile fatty acid (TVFA) were significantly increased in the rumen of goats (p < 0.05). Taken together, these results suggested microbiota in the rumen drive goats to better adapt to high-altitude grazing conditions.

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Gut microbiota adaptation to high altitude in indigenous animals

Cited by 50 publications

References 25 publications

Enterotypes of the Gut Microbial Community and Their Response to Plant Secondary Compounds in Plateau Pikas

Enterotypes of the Gut Microbial Community and Their Response to Plant Secondary Compounds in Plateau Pikas

Selection signatures for high‐altitude adaptation in ruminants

Diversity and Composition of Rumen Bacteria, Fungi, and Protozoa in Goats and Sheep Living in the Same High-Altitude Pasture

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