Feng Enping, Yang Xifu, Zhao Kunming, Li Ying, Zhu Hanyi, Wang Zhenshan, Zhang Zhibin
College of Life Science, Hebei University, Baoding, Hebei Province, China.
State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management on Pest Insects and Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
Front Microbiol. 2023 Sep 13;14:1236359. doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2023.1236359. eCollection 2023.
Scatter-hoarding animals store food in multiple locations within their home range and rely on spatial memory for subsequent localization and retrieval. The relationship between memory and scatter-hoarding behavior has been widely demonstrated, but the association of gut microbiota with spatial memory and seed-hoarding behavior of animals remains unclear.
In this study, by using enclosure behavior tests, memory tests including an object location test (OLT) and a novel object recognition test (NORT), and fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) experiment, we evaluated the role of gut microbiota in affecting the memory and seed-hoarding behavior of rodents. According to their scatter-hoarding intensity, South China field mice () were divided into scatter-hoarding group (SG) and non-scatter-hoarding group (NG).
We found that the SG performed better than the NG in the NORT. FMT from SG donor mice altered the NG recipient mice's gut microbiota structure. Further tests demonstrated FMT from SG donor mice increased memory of NG recipient mice in laboratory tests and seed larder hoarding intensity of NG recipient mice in enclosures.
Our results suggest gut microbiota could modulate the memory and seed-hoarding behavior of animals.
分散贮藏动物会将食物贮藏在其家域内的多个地点，并依靠空间记忆来进行后续的定位和取回。记忆与分散贮藏行为之间的关系已得到广泛证实，但肠道微生物群与动物空间记忆及种子贮藏行为之间的关联仍不明确。
在本研究中，我们通过圈养行为测试、包括物体位置测试（OLT）和新物体识别测试（NORT）在内的记忆测试以及粪便微生物群移植（FMT）实验，评估了肠道微生物群在影响啮齿动物记忆和种子贮藏行为方面的作用。根据华南田鼠的分散贮藏强度，将其分为分散贮藏组（SG）和非分散贮藏组（NG）。
我们发现，在新物体识别测试中，分散贮藏组的表现优于非分散贮藏组。来自分散贮藏组供体小鼠的粪便微生物群移植改变了非分散贮藏组受体小鼠的肠道微生物群结构。进一步测试表明，来自分散贮藏组供体小鼠的粪便微生物群移植在实验室测试中增强了非分散贮藏组受体小鼠的记忆，在圈养环境中提高了非分散贮藏组受体小鼠的种子贮藏强度。
我们的结果表明，肠道微生物群可以调节动物的记忆和种子贮藏行为。
