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Frontiers in microbiology2020; 11; 363; doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2020.00363

Gut Microbiomes of Endangered Przewalski’s Horse Populations in Short- and Long-Term Captivity: Implication for Species Reintroduction Based on the Soft-Release Strategy.

Abstract: Captivity maybe the only choice for survival of many endangered vertebrates, and understanding its broad effects is important for animal management and conservation, including breeding endangered species for subsequent release. Extreme environmental changes during captivity may influence survival ability in the wild. Captivity decreases gut bacterial diversity in a wide range of animals. However, most studies directly compare animals living in captivity with those in the wild, and there is a lack of understanding of effects of gradient shift in lifestyle during species reintroduction based on the soft-release strategy, which involves a confinement period in a field enclosure. Here, we used 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing to analyze gut microbiomes of 11 captive and 12 semi-wild Przewalski's horses (PH; ) under the same captivity environment, using fecal samples. A subset of samples with abundant extracted DNA (including 3 captive and 3 semi-wild individuals) was selected for whole-genome shotgun sequencing. We found that community diversity did not differ between the semi-wild PH and captive PH, but the semi-wild PH had significantly higher bacterial richness than those in captivity. Relative abundances of all dominant phyla were similar across the semi-wild or captive horses, while those of the non-dominant phyla Tenericutes and Proteobacteria were significantly higher in semi-wild PH than in captive PH. Beta diversity results indicated that bacterial communities of captives and semi-wild horses were clearly separated distinct when considering only composition. Functional profiling of the microbiomes revealed that the semi-wild and captive gut microbiomes were largely similar. However, semi-wild horse microbiomes had higher abundance of bacterial genes related to core metabolic processes, such as carbohydrates, amino acids, and nucleic acid metabolism. The study revealed that semi-wild PH could retain specific non-dominant bacteria and harbor a more diverse microbiome than the captive counterpart, and thus have higher metabolic potential to utilize the complex plants efficiently. These results indicate that change in host lifestyle may play a role in microbiome differentiation in the process of reintroduction, suggesting that a short period of time in captivity is acceptable for PH from the perspective of maintaining the richness of intestinal bacterial flora to some extent.
Copyright © 2020 Tang, Li, Srivathsan, Gao, Li, Hu and Zhang.
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Publication Date: 2020-03-12 PubMed ID: 32226419PubMed Central: PMC7081077DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2020.00363Google Scholar: Lookup
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Summary

This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.

This study analyses the differences in gut bacteria between captive and semi-wild Przewalski’s horses, finding that the semi-wild horses have a significantly richer and more diverse gut microbiome. This suggests that a period of captivity, as part of a soft-release strategy for species reintroduction, can maintain a degree of intestinal bacterial richness.

Research Goals and Methodology

  • This research aimed to improve our understanding of the impacts of captivity on endangered species, specifically focusing on the gut microbiomes of Przewalski’s horses.
  • Previous studies have indicated a decrease in gut bacterial diversity in animals in captivity. This study, however, targeted to analyze the gradient shift in lifestyle during species reintroduction based on a soft-release strategy, which involves confinement in a field.
  • Using 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing, the team analyzed gut microbiomes of 11 captive and 12 semi-wild Przewalski’s horses.
  • Selected samples with abundant DNA were also subject to whole-genome sequencing for further analysis.

Findings

  • There was no significant difference in community diversity between semi-wild and captive Przewalski’s horses, but the semi-wild horses had significantly more bacterial richness.
  • The relative abundances of dominant phyla were similar across both types of horses, but the non-dominant phyla Tenericutes and Proteobacteria were more prevalent in semi-wild horses.
  • Analysis of beta diversity indicated distinct bacterial communities in captive and semi-wild horses when considering only composition.
  • Functional profiling of the gut microbiomes revealed similarities between the two types, but the semi-wild horse microbiomes had a higher abundance of bacterial genes related to core metabolic processes like carbohydrates, amino acids, and nucleic acid metabolism.

Implications

  • The findings suggest that semi-wild Przewalski’s horses retain certain non-dominant bacteria and maintain a more diverse microbiome than their captive counterparts.
  • This higher diversity correlates with a higher metabolic potential for efficiently utilizing complex plants.
  • From the perspective of the gut microbiome, these results imply that a short period of captivity can still maintain a certain extent of intestinal bacterial richness in these horses, thus could be useful in species reintroduction strategies.

Cite This Article

APA
Tang L, Li Y, Srivathsan A, Gao Y, Li K, Hu D, Zhang D. (2020). Gut Microbiomes of Endangered Przewalski’s Horse Populations in Short- and Long-Term Captivity: Implication for Species Reintroduction Based on the Soft-Release Strategy. Front Microbiol, 11, 363. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2020.00363

Publication

Frontiers in microbiology
ISSN: 1664-302X
NlmUniqueID: 101548977
Country: Switzerland
Language: English
Volume: 11
Pages: 363
PII: 363

Researcher Affiliations

Tang, Liping
  • School of Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, China.
Li, Yimeng
  • School of Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, China.
Srivathsan, Amrita
  • Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore.
Gao, Yunyun
  • School of Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, China.
Li, Kai
  • School of Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, China.
Hu, Defu
  • School of Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, China.
Zhang, Dong
  • School of Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, China.

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Citations

This article has been cited 14 times.
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