Detection and comparative analysis of cutaneous bacterial communities of farmed and wild Rana dybowskii (Amphibia: Anura)

Abstract

Rana dybowskii Gunther, 1876 is a dominant amphibian species in northeast China. In order to understand the composition and structure of the cutaneous bacterial communities of farmed and wild R. dybowskii, two experimental groups (farmed and wild) were investigated in this study. Following DNA extraction, the V3-V4 hypervariable region of the 16S rRNA gene was targeted and analyzed by high-throughput sequencing. The cutaneous bacterial community diversity was investigated and compared through analysis of alpha and beta diversity. A total of 524,852 valid sequences and 1,023 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were obtained from these two experimental groups. The number of shared OTUs was 333, while there were 603 unique OTUs in the farmed group and 87 unique OTUs in the wild group. The Chao, ACE and Shannon indices of the farmed group were significantly higher than those of the wild group (p < 0.05). The composition and abundance of the dominant bacteria at the phylum and genus levels were different. The dominant phyla in the farmed group were Firmicutes, Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria, Chloroflexi, Fusobacteria, Bacteroidetes, and Cyanobacteria. The dominant phyla of the wild group were Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes, and Actinobacteria. Furthermore, the alpha and beta diversities of the cutaneous bacterial communities of farmed and wild R. dybowskii exhibited significant differences. This study provides a theoretical basis for comprehensively understanding the composition and abundance of bacteria on the skin of farmed and wild R. dybowskii, which helps to develop its breeding industry and gain economic benefits.