Anthropogenic disturbance impacts gut microbiome homeostasis in a Malagasy primate

Abstract

Increasing anthropogenic disturbances in Madagascar are exerting constrains on endemic Malagasy lemurs and their habitats, with possible effects on their health and survival. An important component of health is the gut microbiome, which might be disrupted by various stressors associated with environmental change. We have studied the gut microbiome of grey-brown mouse lemurs (Microcebus griseorufus), one of the smallest Malagasy primates and an important model of the convergent evolution of diseases. We sampled two sites: one situated in a national park and the other consisting of a more disturbed site around human settlement. We found that more intense anthropogenic disturbances indeed disrupted the gut microbiome of this lemur species with a marked reduction in its diversity and led to a shift in microbial community composition. Interestingly, we noted a decrease in beneficial bacteria together with a slight increase in disease-associated bacteria and alterations in microbial metabolic functions. Because of the crucial services provided by the microbiome to host health and in disease, such negative alterations in the gut microbiome of the lemur from anthropogenically disturbed habitat might impact the health of mouse lemurs, rendering them susceptible to diseases and ultimately affecting their survival in the shrinking biodiversity seen in Madagascar. Gut microbiome analyses might thus serve as an early warning signal for pending threats to lemur populations.

Responses to Reduced Feeding Frequency in Captive-Born Cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus): Implications for Behavioural and Physiological Stress and Gastrointestinal Health

“…Animals' GI tracts harbour essential gut microbes serving various functions [18]. However, disturbance-related deviation in the microbial diversity and abundance pattern beyond a natural range, i.e., gut dysbiosis, can advance pathophysiology and affect host health [71].…”

“…However, the frequency with which it is fed in captivity and its quality could affect GI health by changing the amount of protein reaching the large intestine. Colonic fermentation of poorly digested dietary protein modifies microbiota composition in favour of proteolytic bacteria, some of which can be pathogenic in high concentrations [17,18] and produce putrefactive compounds (e.g., ammonia, indoles, phenols) associated with various disease states [19][20][21]. Moreover, horse (in particular) is commonly fed as muscle meat without low to nondigestible collagen-rich matter (e.g., bone, tendons, cartilage); therefore, its relative lack of 'animal fibre' may further increase putrefaction of digesta in the intestine [19,20,22,23].…”

Reactive Air Disinfection Technologies: Principles and Applications in Bioaerosol Removal

“…The UV disinfection efficacy could be limited by environmental factors (humidity, irradiation distance, or exposure time) and UV resistance or self-healing of some microorganisms. 32,33 For example, following 3 h of UV (254 nm) irradiation, the repair phenomenon of airborne MS2 phage was observed, with a photoreactivation percentage ranging from 18.98% to 35.54%. 34 The combination of highefficiency particulate air (HEPA) filtration and UVC light (254 nm) has been used in the removal of SARS-CoV-2 bioaerosols with a removal rate of 93% reducing the particle count from 79 to 5 particles.…”

Gut Microbiome Profiling of the Endangered Southern Greater Glider (Petauroides volans) after the 2019–2020 Australian Megafire

“…Anthropogenic disturbances can induce dysbiosis of wildlife gut microbiomes [63] and could offer a potential explanation for the lack of microbial diversity observed at Eurobodalla NP. Recent work has shown that anthropogenic habitat disturbances can significantly disrupt the gut microbiome and lead to reduced microbial diversity in the gray-brown mouse lemur [64], Kuhl's pipistrelle bat [65], Tome's spiny rat and common opossum [66]. Eurobodalla NP is bounded by Moruya River to the north, Coila Lake to the south, and the Princes Highway and cleared land to the west, which act as major barriers to dispersal for arboreal marsupials.…”

“…Alternatively, the smaller sample size used in the aforementioned study (n = 7 post fire) may have intro-duced a stronger sampling bias compared to our study, which incorporated a considerably larger sample size (n = 25) and may thus provide a more accurate representation of the effects of fire on gut microbiomes. Habitat disturbances, more generally, have been well documented to impact gut microbial diversity in mammals [27,[64][65][66]121,122]. For instance, gut microbial communities of the southern hairy-nosed wombat are more similar between individuals from degraded habitats than with those from undisturbed habitats [27].…”