Social odours covary with bacterial community in the anal secretions of wild meerkats

Leclaire, Sarah; Jacob, Staffan; Greene, Lydia K.; Dubay, George R.; Drea, Christine M.

doi:10.1038/s41598-017-03356-x

Cited by 63 publications

(79 citation statements)

References 71 publications

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“…Most social animals, however, communicate information (e.g., age, sex, physiological status) through scent, and a large part of the scent profile is attributable to skin bacteria (Kuhn & Natsch, ). Separate studies have documented distinct bacterial communities that appear to mediate the different chemical profiles in the scent glands of wild hyenas (Theis et al., ) and meerkats (Leclaire, Jacob, Greene, Dubay, & Drea, ).…”

Section: Microbiome Servicesmentioning

confidence: 99%

The ecosystem services of animal microbiomes

et al. 2018

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Microbiologists often evaluate microbial community dynamics by formulating functional hypotheses based on ecological processes. Indeed, many of the methods and terms currently used to describe animal microbiomes derive from ecology and evolutionary biology. As our understanding of the composition and functional dynamics of "the microbiome" grows, we increasingly refer to the host as an ecosystem within which microbial processes play out. Even so, an ecosystem service framework that extends to the context of the host has thus far been lacking. Here, we argue that ecosystem services are a useful framework with which to consider the value of microbes to their hosts. We discuss those "microbiome services" in the specific context of the mammalian gut, providing a context from which to develop new hypotheses and to evaluate microbial functions in future studies and novel systems.

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Section: Microbiome Servicesmentioning

confidence: 99%

The ecosystem services of animal microbiomes

et al. 2018

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“…MHC diversity has direct effects in combating diseases, and can therefore be reflected in various condition‐dependent traits (Dunn, Bollmer, Freeman‐Gallant, & Whittingham, ; Slade, Watson, & MacDougall‐Shackleton, ), including odour cues (Reusch, Haberli, Aeschlimann, & Milinski, ; Setchell et al, ; Thornhill et al, ). Similarly, in the context of the assessment of MHC dissimilarity to potential mates, most studies have shown the importance of odour cues (e.g., Leclaire, Strandh, Mardon, Westerdahl, & Bonadonna, ; Olsson et al, ; Ruff, Nelson, Kubinak, & Potts, ; Wedekind, Seebeck, Bettens, & Paepke, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Plumage microbiota covaries with the major histocompatibility complex in blue petrels

et al. 2019

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To increase fitness, a wide range of vertebrates preferentially mate with partners that are dissimilar at the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) or that have high MHC diversity. Although MHC often can be assessed through olfactory cues, the mechanism by which MHC genes influence odour remains largely unclear. MHC class IIB molecules, which enable recognition and elimination of extracellular bacteria, have been suggested to influence odour indirectly by shaping odour‐producing microbiota, i.e. bacterial communities. However, there is little evidence of the predicted covariation between an animal's MHC genotype and its bacterial communities in scent‐producing body surfaces. Here, using high‐throughput sequencing, we tested the covariation between MHC class IIB genotypes and feather microbiota in the blue petrel (Halobaena caerulea), a seabird with highly developed olfaction that has been suggested to rely on oduor cues during an MHC‐based mate choice. First, we show that individuals with similar MHC class IIB profiles also have similar bacterial assemblages in their feathers. Then, we show that individuals with high MHC diversity have less diverse feather microbiota and also a reduced abundance of a bacterium of the genus Arsenophonus, a genus in which some species are symbionts of avian ectoparasites. Our results, showing that feather microbiota covary with MHC, are consistent with the hypothesis that individual MHC genotype may shape the semiochemical‐producing microbiota in birds.

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“…Hence, these results correspond to earlier findings on group‐specific meerkat scents, as meerkats were found to distinguish scent marks of intruders from those of group members (Mares et al., ). Furthermore, bacterial communities of adult meerkat scent secretions and social odours differed between groups, which was mainly attributed to group members sharing the same socio‐ecological environment (Leclaire et al., , ). Accordingly, our results also provide evidence that sampling with TD tubes is suitable for investigating biological questions on mammalian chemical communication.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Meerkats live in territorial groups comprising a dominant breeding pair and subordinate helpers related to the dominant pair at various degrees (Clutton‐Brock & Manser, ). They are known to discriminate between conspecific scents based on kinship (Leclaire, Nielsen, Thavarajah, Manser, & Clutton‐Brock, ) and group membership (Mares, Young, Levesque, Harrison, & Clutton‐Brock, ), and possess scent glands in an anal pouch, whose bacterial communities and corresponding odours vary with sex and group membership (Leclaire, Jacob, Greene, Dubay, & Drea, ; Leclaire, Nielsen, & Drea, ). These attributes, in combination with the relatively controlled captive setting, create an attractive system for investigating the use of TD tubes for non‐invasive sampling of mammalian body odour from both, a methodological and a biological perspective.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A non‐invasive method for sampling the body odour of mammals

et al. 2017

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Olfaction is a central aspect of mammalian communication, providing information about individual attributes such as identity, sex, group membership or genetic quality. Yet, the chemical underpinnings of olfactory cues remain little understood, one of the reasons being the difficulty in obtaining high quality samples for chemical analysis. In this study, we adjusted and evaluated the use of thermal desorption (TD) tubes, commonly used in plant metabolomic and environmental studies, for non‐invasive sampling of mammalian body odour. We obtained chemical profiles of meerkat (Suricata suricatta) body odour samples, using TD tubes analysed with gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. TD tubes captured a wide range of volatile and semi‐volatile organic compounds, including compounds likely originating from the target animals. Adjustment of sampling parameters (distance, volume, flow rate, interruption of sampling) to increase the feasibility for a non‐invasive application yielded samples of adequate quality. However, to minimize the variability between samples, sampling parameters should be kept constant and samples should be collected when no conspecifics are close‐by. The method was sensitive enough to pick up population differences in the chemical profiles of two captive groups of meerkats, demonstrating its applicability to biological questions. With sufficiently habituated animals, the method is applicable non‐invasively, allowing short‐ and long‐term studies on a wide range of questions, including e.g. chemical signatures of kinship, diet, individual health or reproductive state.

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Social odours covary with bacterial community in the anal secretions of wild meerkats

Cited by 63 publications

References 71 publications

The ecosystem services of animal microbiomes

The ecosystem services of animal microbiomes

Plumage microbiota covaries with the major histocompatibility complex in blue petrels

A non‐invasive method for sampling the body odour of mammals

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