The Howler Monkey as a Model for Exploring Host-Gut Microbiota Interactions in Primates

Abstract

The mammalian gut microbiota is essential to many aspects of host physiology, including nutrition, metabolic activity, and immune homeostasis. Despite the existence of numerous studies of the impact of the gut microbiota on human health and disease, much work remains to be done to improve our understanding of the host-microbe relationship in nonhuman primates. Howler monkeys ( Alouatta spp.) are highly dependent on the gut microbiota for the breakdown of plant structural carbohydrates, and in this chapter we use new data describing the gut microbiome of captive and wild black howler monkeys ( A. pigra ) to develop and test two models of host-microbe interactions and bioenergetics. Improving our understanding of how spatial and temporal fl uctuations in diet affect the nonhuman primate gut microbiota, and how this in turn infl uences host nutrition and physiology, has important implications for the study of the role that the gut microbiota plays in primate ecology, health, and conservation.Resumen El papel de la microbiota intestinal es fundamental para muchos aspectos de la fi siología de los mamíferos, incluyendo la nutrición, la actividad metabólica y la homeostasis del sistema inmune. A pesar de la existencia de muchos estudios acerca de la microbiota intestinal humana debido a sus implicaciones para la salud, aún queda mucho por hacer para poder entender la relación huésped-microorganismos en primates no humanos. Los monos aulladores ( Alouatta spp.) dependen de manera importante de los microbios intestinales para la digestión de los carbohidratos estructurales de las plantas. En este capítulo utilizamos nuevos datos sobre la composición de la microbiota de monos aulladores negros cautivos y silvestres ( A. pigra ) para desarrollar y poner a prueba dos modelos sobre las interacciones

Influence of fruit and invertebrate consumption on the gut microbiota of wild white‐faced capuchins (Cebus capucinus)

“…However, it appears from our data that Proteobacteria is a major component of white‐faced capuchin gut microbial communities and may play a large role in lipid metabolism in their gut microbiome. The white‐faced capuchin gut microbial community composition appears to be different than that of most primates studied to date, with a higher relative abundance of Proteobacteria and lower relative abundances of Bacteroidetes (Amato and Righini, ; Amato et al, ; Barelli et al, ; Bennett et al, ; Degnan et al, ; Frey et al, ; Hale, Tan, Knight, & Amato, ; Moeller et al, ; Ochman et al, ; Ren, Grieneisen, Alberts, Archie, & Wu, ; Su et al, ; Sun et al, ; Tung et al, ), with the caveat that the variation in methods between published studies makes a direct comparison difficult (Table ). There are, however, similarities in the gut microbiome between capuchins and pygmy lorises (Bo et al, ) (Table ).…”

Primate microbial endocrinology: An uncharted frontier

“…A variety of additional bacterial glucocorticoid‐metabolizing enzymes have also been discovered (Devlin & Fischbach, ; Morris & Ridlon, ). Amato and Righini () suggest that it is possible for increased glucocorticoid levels to coincide with decreased microbial diversity, since primates in degraded habitats have reduced microbial diversity and presumably experience higher allostatic load. Although no primate study has yet tested this hypothesis, in wild red squirrels ( Tamiasciurus hudsonicus ) it was found that fecal glucocorticoid metabolites were negatively correlated with bacterial diversity and that there was a positive relationship over time between fecal glucocorticoid metabolite concentrations and bacterial abundance of Pasteurellaceae, a family with known epizootic pathogens (Stothart et al, ).…”

The microbial reproductive ecology of white‐faced capuchins (Cebus capucinus)

“…These shifts in the gut microbiota may be triggered by factors such as changes in host diet or hormone levels, and, if timed correctly, could help hosts compensate for energy shortfalls and changes in energy expenditure (Amato, ). Indeed, a study of Alouatta pigra found that reproductive state significantly altered gut microbial community structure (Amato & Righini, ; Nakamura et al, ; but see Ren, Grieneisen, Alberts, Archie, & Wu, ).…”