Ma Rui, Yu Xiang, Bi Wenlei, Liu Jiabin, Li Zusheng, Hou Rong, Wu Wei, Li Ping, He Hui, Zhang Mei, Yang Xi, Yang Hong, Gu Xiaodong, Gu Haijun, Zhang Qian, Qi Dunwu
The Conservation of Endangered Wildlife Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, Chengdu, 610000, Sichuan, China.
Administration of Daxiangling Nature Reserve, Yaan, 625000, Sichuan, China.
Sci Rep. 2025 Aug 23;15(1):31014. doi: 10.1038/s41598-025-16136-9.
The biggest challenge during the reintroduction of captive giant pandas into the wild is their ability to adapt to the natural environment, and the role of gut microbiota in this process remains unknown. Here, the gut microbiota was analyzed and categorized into training, exploration (1-3 months post-release) and stable period (4-6 months post-release) by activity intensity of released pandas. We found that the gut microbiota diversity of pandas was significantly higher during the stable period compared to the training period. Streptococcus was significantly enriched in the training period, but Clostridium became significantly enriched after being released. KEGG functional prediction analysis revealed that during the stable phase, carbohydrate and amino acids metabolism was significantly reduced, while pathways associated with cofactors and vitamins, other amino acids, lipids, nucleotide and energy metabolism were markedly enriched. This suggests that, after a three-month acclimation period, the transformation of the gut microbiota provides reintroduced giant pandas with more diverse energy acquisition strategies suited to the wild environment. This finding highlighted that the first 3 months post-release are a critical exploration period for digestive adaptation to the wild environment, which will help guide the implementation of future monitoring efforts post-release.
圈养大熊猫放归野外过程中的最大挑战是它们适应自然环境的能力，而肠道微生物群在此过程中的作用仍不清楚。在此，根据放归大熊猫的活动强度，对其肠道微生物群进行分析，并分为训练期、探索期（放归后1 - 3个月）和稳定期（放归后4 - 6个月）。我们发现，与训练期相比，大熊猫在稳定期的肠道微生物群多样性显著更高。链球菌在训练期显著富集，但放归后梭菌变得显著富集。KEGG功能预测分析表明，在稳定期，碳水化合物和氨基酸代谢显著减少，而与辅因子和维生素、其他氨基酸、脂质、核苷酸和能量代谢相关的途径明显富集。这表明，经过三个月的适应期后，肠道微生物群的转变为放归的大熊猫提供了更多适合野外环境的能量获取策略。这一发现突出了放归后的前3个月是适应野外环境消化的关键探索期，这将有助于指导未来放归后监测工作的实施。
