Luo Qingqing, Gao Hongyan, Xiang Yujia, Li Jian, Dong Lin, Wang Xingran, Liu Fangqing, Guo Yuhong, Shen Chao, Ding Qiang, Qin Chengfeng, Liang Guanxiang, Wen Longying
Key Laboratory of Sichuan Institute for Protecting Endangered Birds in the Southwest Mountains, College of Life Sciences, Leshan Normal University, Leshan, China.
Center for Infection Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China.
NPJ Biofilms Microbiomes. 2025 Apr 23;11(1):64. doi: 10.1038/s41522-025-00703-z.
Migratory birds carry pathogens, posing a significant threat to environmental and human health. We documented the metatranscriptome and RNA virome of 896 stool samples from migratory birds and environmental samples over four consecutive years in southwest China. Our analysis identified Catellicoccus marimammalium as the predominant bacterium in the gut of black-headed gulls, with an average relative abundance of 79.3%. Strain-level analysis of C. marimammalium revealed a dominant population with some longitudinal diversity over the four years. Additionally, the gut of black-headed gulls was found to harbor numerous viruses, including a novel hepatovirus. Lysates of cells of C. marimammalium but not other bacteria derived from black-headed gulls could inhibit the replication of human hepatovirus, suggesting a potential regulatory role for gut commensal bacteria in modulating viral carriage. These findings enhance our understanding of the microbiome and RNA virome diversity in migratory birds and provide insights into the modulation of asymptomatic infections.
候鸟携带病原体，对环境和人类健康构成重大威胁。我们连续四年记录了中国西南部候鸟896份粪便样本以及环境样本的宏转录组和RNA病毒组。我们的分析确定海生哺乳动物卡特球菌是黑头鸥肠道中的主要细菌，平均相对丰度为79.3%。对海生哺乳动物卡特球菌的菌株水平分析显示，在这四年中存在一个具有一定纵向多样性的优势种群。此外，发现黑头鸥的肠道中含有多种病毒，包括一种新型肝炎病毒。海生哺乳动物卡特球菌的细胞裂解物而非来自黑头鸥的其他细菌的细胞裂解物能够抑制人类肝炎病毒的复制，这表明肠道共生细菌在调节病毒携带方面可能具有潜在的调节作用。这些发现增进了我们对候鸟微生物组和RNA病毒组多样性的理解，并为无症状感染的调节提供了见解。
