School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Wenzhou University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang 325035, China; State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management of Pest Insects and Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; Key Laboratory for Water Environment and Marine Biological Resources Protection in Zhejiang Province, Wenzhou 325035, China.
School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Wenzhou University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang 325035, China; Key Laboratory for Water Environment and Marine Biological Resources Protection in Zhejiang Province, Wenzhou 325035, China.
Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol. 2024 Nov;297:111710. doi: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2024.111710. Epub 2024 Jul 25.
Temporal niche partitioning is a crucial strategy for sympatric species to avoid predation and competition for habitat space and food resources. This study investigated the effect of the gut microbiota on the metabolic rhythms of two sympatric gerbil species (Meriones unguiculatus and Meriones meridianus) to test the hypothesis that the oscillatory patterns of microbiota may not fully mirror those of the host's metabolism. Experiment 1 compared the circadian metabolic and gut microbiota rhythms of M. unguiculatus (n = 12) and M. meridianus (n = 12) and measured the subjects' body temperatures and environmental temperature preferences. In Experiment 2.1, six M. meridianus gerbils were treated with antibiotics, and in Experiment 2.2, 21 M. unguiculatus gerbils (seven per treatment) were randomly gavaged with saline or a gut microbiota suspension from either M. unguiculatus or M. meridianus; their metabolic rhythms were subsequently measured. The results showed that the two gerbils had different metabolic phenotypes that determined activity heterogeneity and contributed to their coexistence. The relative abundances of Bacteroidetes, Actinobacteria, and Cyanobacteria in M. meridianus varied rhythmically in parallel with the daily metabolic rate, which was significantly higher at night than during the day. The rhythm of the metabolic rate was not noticeable in M. unguiculatus. However, in M.unguiculatus, the relative abundances of Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, Proteobacteria, and Verrucomicrobia were significantly higher during the day than at night, while Cyanobacteria exhibited the opposite pattern. Antibiotic treatment significantly weakened the metabolic rhythms of M. meridianus, and the circadian rhythms slowly recovered after stopping antibiotic gavage. However, after transplanting M. meridianus' gut microbiota into M. unguiculatus, the metabolic rate of M. unguiculatus was not significantly different from that of the control groups. Our hypothesis was partly supported: the microbiota was only partially involved in regulating the metabolic rhythms of gerbils, and other factors could compensate for the effect of the gut microbiota on host metabolic rhythms. This finding underscores the complexity of host-microbiota interactions and highlights the need for further exploration into the multifaceted mechanisms governing host metabolic regulation.
时间生态位分化是同域物种避免捕食和竞争栖息地空间和食物资源的关键策略。本研究调查了肠道微生物群对两种同域沙鼠（黑线毛足鼠和子午沙鼠）代谢节律的影响，以检验以下假设：微生物群的波动模式可能不完全反映宿主代谢的波动模式。实验 1 比较了黑线毛足鼠（n=12）和子午沙鼠（n=12）的昼夜代谢和肠道微生物群节律，并测量了实验动物的体温和环境温度偏好。在实验 2.1 中，给 6 只子午沙鼠用抗生素处理，在实验 2.2 中，21 只黑线毛足鼠（每处理 7 只）随机用盐水或来自黑线毛足鼠或子午沙鼠的肠道微生物群混悬液灌胃；随后测量它们的代谢节律。结果表明，这两种沙鼠具有不同的代谢表型，决定了活动的异质性，并有助于它们的共存。子午沙鼠的拟杆菌门、放线菌门和蓝细菌的相对丰度呈昼夜节律变化，与每日代谢率平行，夜间显著高于白天。黑线毛足鼠的代谢率节律不明显。然而，在黑线毛足鼠中，厚壁菌门、拟杆菌门、变形菌门和疣微菌门的相对丰度白天显著高于夜间，而蓝细菌则相反。抗生素处理显著削弱了子午沙鼠的代谢节律，停止抗生素灌胃后，昼夜节律缓慢恢复。然而，将子午沙鼠的肠道微生物群移植到黑线毛足鼠后，黑线毛足鼠的代谢率与对照组没有显著差异。我们的假设得到了部分支持：微生物群仅部分参与调节沙鼠的代谢节律，其他因素可以补偿肠道微生物群对宿主代谢节律的影响。这一发现突出了宿主-微生物群相互作用的复杂性，并强调需要进一步探索控制宿主代谢调节的多方面机制。
