Comparative study of gut microbiota reveals the adaptive strategies of gibbons living in suboptimal habitats

From BugSigDB
Reviewed Marked as Reviewed by KateRasheed on 2025-4-29
Citation
PMID PubMed identifier for scientific articles.
DOI Digital object identifier for electronic documents.
URI
Authors
Lan LY, Liu TC, Gao SM, Li Q, Yang L, Fei HL, Zhong XK, Wang YX, Zhu CY, Abel C, Kappeler PM, Huang LN, Fan PF
Journal
NPJ biofilms and microbiomes
Year
2025
Wild animals face numerous challenges in less ideal habitats, including the lack of food as well as changes in diet. Understanding how the gut microbiomes of wild animals adapt to changes in food resources within suboptimal habitats is critical for their survival. Therefore, we conducted a longitudinal sampling of three gibbon species living in high-quality (Nomascus hainanus) and suboptimal (Nomascus concolor and Hoolock tianxing) habitats to address the dynamics of gut microbiome assembly over one year. The three gibbon species exhibited significantly different gut microbial diversity and composition. N. hainanus showed the lowest alpha diversity and highest nestedness, suggesting a more specialized and potentially stable microbial community in terms of composition, while H. tianxing displayed high species turnover and low nestedness, reflecting a more dynamic microbial ecosystem, which may indicate greater sensitivity to environmental changes or a flexible response to habitat variability. The gut microbial community of N. concolor was influenced by homogeneous selection in the deterministic process, primarily driven by Prevotellaceae. In contrast, the gut microbial communities of H. tianxing and N. hainanus were influenced by dispersal limitation in the stochastic process, driven by Acholeplasmataceae and Fibrobacterota, respectively. Further, the microbial response patterns to leaf feeding in N. hainanus differed from those of the other two gibbon species. In conclusion, this first cross-species comparative study provides initial insights into the different ecological adaptive strategies of gut microbiomes from a point of community assembly, which could contribute to the long-term conservation of wild primates. In this study, we conducted longitudinal sampling of three gibbon species living in high-quality (Nomascus hainanus) and suboptimal (Nomascus concolor and Hoolock tianxing) habitats to address the dynamics of gut microbiome (composition, alpha diversity, beta diversity and assembly process) over one year.

Experiment 1


Reviewed Marked as Reviewed by KateRasheed on 2025-4-29

Curated date: 2025/03/03

Curator: KateRasheed

Revision editor(s): KateRasheed

Subjects

Location of subjects
China
Host species Species from which microbiome was sampled. Contact us to have more species added.
Nomascus hainanus
Body site Anatomical site where microbial samples were extracted from according to the Uber Anatomy Ontology
Feces Cow dung,Cow pat,Droppings,Dung,Excrement,Excreta,Faeces,Fecal material,Fecal matter,Fewmet,Frass,Guano,Matières fécales@fr,Merde@fr,Ordure,Partie de la merde@fr,Piece of shit,Porción de mierda@es,Portion of dung,Portion of excrement,Portion of faeces,Portion of fecal material,Portion of fecal matter,Portion of feces,Portion of guano,Portion of scat,Portionem cacas,Scat,Spoor,Spraint,Stool,Teil der fäkalien@de,Feces,feces
Condition The experimental condition / phenotype studied according to the Experimental Factor Ontology
Diet measurement Diet measurement,diet measurement
Group 0 name Corresponds to the control (unexposed) group for case-control studies
Low + Middle feeding group - Nomascus hainanus
Group 1 name Corresponds to the case (exposed) group for case-control studies
High feeding group - Nomascus hainanus
Group 1 definition Diagnostic criteria applied to define the specific condition / phenotype represented in the case (exposed) group
These refers to gibbon species living in high-quality (Nomascus hainanus) habitats with stable fruit production; who consumed high proportion of leaf per month.

Lab analysis

Sequencing type
16S
16S variable region One or more hypervariable region(s) of the bacterial 16S gene
V4
Sequencing platform Manufacturer and experimental platform used for quantifying microbial abundance
Illumina

Statistical Analysis

Data transformation Data transformation applied to microbial abundance measurements prior to differential abundance testing (if any).
relative abundances
Statistical test
LEfSe
Significance threshold p-value or FDR threshold used for differential abundance testing (if any)
0.05
MHT correction Have statistical tests be corrected for multiple hypothesis testing (MHT)?
Yes
LDA Score above Threshold for the linear discriminant analysis (LDA) score for studies using the popular LEfSe tool
2


Signature 1

Reviewed Marked as Reviewed by KateRasheed on 2025-4-29

Curated date: 2025/03/03

Curator: KateRasheed

Revision editor(s): KateRasheed

Source: Fig. 5, Supplementary Table 6

Description: Linear Discriminant Analysis Effect Size (LEfSe) analyses revealed significant contributions to the differences in abundance across various bacteria taxonomic levels, from phylum to genus, among different gibbon species with varying proportions of leaf consumption.

Abundance in Group 1: increased abundance in High feeding group - Nomascus hainanus

NCBI Quality ControlLinks
Acidaminococcaceae
Acidaminococcales
Fibrobacter
Fibrobacter intestinalis
Fibrobacteraceae
Fibrobacterales
Fibrobacteria
Fibrobacterota
Lachnospiraceae bacterium NK3A20
Muribaculaceae
Phascolarctobacterium
Ruminococcus
Spirochaetaceae
Spirochaetales
Spirochaetia
Spirochaetota
Sutterella
Treponema
Treponema ruminis
unclassified Bacteroidales
unclassified Bacteroidia
unclassified Phascolarctobacterium
uncultured bacterium
Lachnospiraceae UCG-004Lachnospiraceae UCG-004
unclassified Lachnospiraceae UCG-004unclassified Lachnospiraceae UCG-004

Revision editor(s): KateRasheed

Experiment 2


Reviewed Marked as Reviewed by KateRasheed on 2025-4-29

Curated date: 2025/03/03

Curator: KateRasheed

Revision editor(s): KateRasheed

Differences from previous experiment shown

Subjects

Host species Species from which microbiome was sampled. Contact us to have more species added.
Nomascus concolor


Group 0 name Corresponds to the control (unexposed) group for case-control studies
High + Middle feeding group - Nomascus concolor
Group 1 name Corresponds to the case (exposed) group for case-control studies
Low feeding group - Nomascus concolor
Group 1 definition Diagnostic criteria applied to define the specific condition / phenotype represented in the case (exposed) group
These refers to gibbon species living in suboptimal habitats with lower and more variable fruit availability, relying more on leaves. They consumed low proportion of leaf per month.

Lab analysis

Statistical Analysis

Signature 1

Reviewed Marked as Reviewed by KateRasheed on 2025-4-29

Curated date: 2025/03/03

Curator: KateRasheed

Revision editor(s): KateRasheed

Source: Fig. 5, Supplementary Table 6

Description: Linear Discriminant Analysis Effect Size (LEfSe) analyses revealed significant contributions to the differences in abundance across various bacteria taxonomic levels, from phylum to genus, among different gibbon species with varying proportions of leaf consumption.

Abundance in Group 1: increased abundance in Low feeding group - Nomascus concolor

NCBI Quality ControlLinks
Acholeplasmataceae
Acholeplasmatales
Anaeroplasma
Bacilli
Bacillota
Bacteroidaceae
Bacteroides
Marseilla massiliensis
unclassified Bacteroides
uncultured bacterium
unclassified Prevotellaceae UCG-001unclassified Prevotellaceae UCG-001
Prevotellaceae NK3B31 groupPrevotellaceae NK3B31 group

Revision editor(s): KateRasheed

Experiment 3


Reviewed Marked as Reviewed by KateRasheed on 2025-4-29

Curated date: 2025/03/03

Curator: KateRasheed

Revision editor(s): KateRasheed

Differences from previous experiment shown

Subjects

Host species Species from which microbiome was sampled. Contact us to have more species added.
Hoolock tianxing


Group 0 name Corresponds to the control (unexposed) group for case-control studies
Low + Middle feeding group - Hoolock tianxing
Group 1 name Corresponds to the case (exposed) group for case-control studies
High feeding group - Hoolock tianxing
Group 1 definition Diagnostic criteria applied to define the specific condition / phenotype represented in the case (exposed) group
These refers to gibbon species living in suboptimal habitats with lower and more variable fruit availability, relying more on leaves. They had the lowest monthly fruit intake. This group consumed high proportion of leaf per month.

Lab analysis

Statistical Analysis

Signature 1

Reviewed Marked as Reviewed by KateRasheed on 2025-4-29

Curated date: 2025/03/03

Curator: KateRasheed

Revision editor(s): KateRasheed

Source: Fig. 5, Supplementary Table 6

Description: Linear Discriminant Analysis Effect Size (LEfSe) analyses revealed significant contributions to the differences in abundance across various bacteria taxonomic levels, from phylum to genus, among different gibbon species with varying proportions of leaf consumption.

Abundance in Group 1: increased abundance in High feeding group - Hoolock tianxing

NCBI Quality ControlLinks
Anaerobutyricum hallii
Bacillota
Bacillota bacterium
Bacteroidota bacterium
Butyricicoccaceae
Butyrivibrio
Candidatus Izemoplasmatales
Catenisphaera
Clostridia
Clostridium
Colidextribacter
Colidextribacter massiliensis
Eshraghiella crossota
Eubacteriales
Eubacterium coprostanoligenes
Eubacterium ruminantium
Lachnospira
Lachnospira eligens
Lachnospiraceae
Lachnospiraceae bacterium NK3A20
Lachnospirales
Muribaculaceae
Oscillibacter
Oscillospiraceae
Rhodospirillales
Roseburia
Roseburia hominis
Roseburia intestinalis
Ruminococcus
Ruminococcus bicirculans (ex Liu et al. 2021)
Subdoligranulum
[Eubacterium] siraeum
bacterium YE64
rumen bacterium NK4A214
unclassified Acholeplasmataceae
unclassified Bacteroidales
unclassified Catenisphaera
unclassified Clostridium
unclassified Erysipelotrichaceae
unclassified Lachnospiraceae
unclassified Oscillibacter
unclassified Roseburia
unclassified Ruminococcus
unclassified Selenomonadales
uncultured Acetivibrio sp.
uncultured Clostridium sp.
uncultured Faecalibacterium sp.
uncultured Lachnospiraceae bacterium
uncultured Oscillospiraceae bacterium
uncultured Roseburia sp.
uncultured bacterium
uncultured prokaryote
Erysipelatoclostridiaceae UCG-004Erysipelatoclostridiaceae UCG-004
Oscillospiraceae UCG-005Oscillospiraceae UCG-005
Oscillospirales UCG-010Oscillospirales UCG-010
Clostridia vadinBB60 groupClostridia vadinBB60 group
Lachnospiraceae UCG-003Lachnospiraceae UCG-003
Prevotellaceae UCG-003Prevotellaceae UCG-003
uncultured Rhodospirillalesuncultured Rhodospirillales
unclassified Oscillospiraceae UCG-003unclassified Oscillospiraceae UCG-003
unclassified Lachnospiraceae NK4A136 groupunclassified Lachnospiraceae NK4A136 group
unclassified Oscillospiraceae UCG-005unclassified Oscillospiraceae UCG-005
unclassified Prevotellaceae UCG-003unclassified Prevotellaceae UCG-003
unclassified Eubacterium ruminantium groupunclassified Eubacterium ruminantium group
unclassified Eubacterium siraeumunclassified Eubacterium siraeum
unclassified Eubacterium eligensunclassified Eubacterium eligens
unclassified Anaerobutyricum halliiunclassified Anaerobutyricum hallii
Lachnospiraceae bacterium NK4A136

Revision editor(s): KateRasheed

Experiment 4


Reviewed Marked as Reviewed by KateRasheed on 2025-4-29

Curated date: 2025/03/03

Curator: KateRasheed

Revision editor(s): KateRasheed

Differences from previous experiment shown

Subjects

Group 0 name Corresponds to the control (unexposed) group for case-control studies
Low + High feeding group - Hoolock tianxing
Group 1 name Corresponds to the case (exposed) group for case-control studies
Middle feeding group - Hoolock tianxing
Group 1 definition Diagnostic criteria applied to define the specific condition / phenotype represented in the case (exposed) group
These refers to gibbon species living in suboptimal habitats with lower and more variable fruit availability, relying more on leaves. They had the lowest monthly fruit intake. This group consumed middle (not high or low) proportion of leaf per month.

Lab analysis

Statistical Analysis

Signature 1

Reviewed Marked as Reviewed by KateRasheed on 2025-4-29

Curated date: 2025/03/03

Curator: KateRasheed

Revision editor(s): KateRasheed

Source: Fig. 5, Supplementary Table 6

Description: Linear Discriminant Analysis Effect Size (LEfSe) analyses revealed significant contributions to the differences in abundance across various bacteria taxonomic levels, from phylum to genus, among different gibbon species with varying proportions of leaf consumption.

Abundance in Group 1: increased abundance in Middle feeding group - Hoolock tianxing

NCBI Quality ControlLinks
Acidimicrobiia
Actinomycetota
Aeromonadales
Asteroleplasma
Bacteroidales
Bacteroidia
Bacteroidota
Bifidobacteriaceae
Bifidobacteriales
Bifidobacterium
Campylobacter
Campylobacteraceae
Campylobacterales
Campylobacterota
Coprobacillaceae
Coriobacteriales
Coriobacteriia
Eggerthellaceae
Epsilonproteobacteria
Erysipelotrichaceae
Erysipelotrichales
Gammaproteobacteria
Lachnospiraceae bacterium
Negativicutes
Prevotella
Prevotellaceae
Prevotellaceae bacterium
Pseudomonadota
Raoultibacter
Raoultibacter sp.
Rikenellaceae
Selenomonadaceae
Solobacterium
Succinivibrio
Succinivibrionaceae
Sutterellaceae bacterium
Veillonellaceae
unclassified Alloprevotella
unclassified Atopobiaceae
unclassified Bifidobacterium
unclassified Campylobacter
unclassified Coriobacteriales
unclassified Prevotella
unclassified Prevotellaceae
unclassified Selenomonadaceae
unclassified Succinivibrio
unclassified Veillonellaceae
uncultured Anaeroplasmataceae bacterium
uncultured Erysipelotrichaceae bacterium
uncultured bacterium
uncultured rumen bacterium
Rikenellaceae_RC9_gut_groupRikenellaceae_RC9_gut_group
Veillonellales-SelenomonadalesVeillonellales-Selenomonadales
Prevotellaceae NK3B31_groupPrevotellaceae NK3B31_group
unclassified Prevotellaceae NK3B31 groupunclassified Prevotellaceae NK3B31 group
uncultured Eggerthellaceae bacterium

Revision editor(s): KateRasheed

Experiment 5


Reviewed Marked as Reviewed by KateRasheed on 2025-4-29

Curated date: 2025/03/03

Curator: KateRasheed

Revision editor(s): KateRasheed

Differences from previous experiment shown

Subjects

Group 0 name Corresponds to the control (unexposed) group for case-control studies
High + Middle feeding group - Hoolock tianxing
Group 1 name Corresponds to the case (exposed) group for case-control studies
Low feeding group - Hoolock tianxing
Group 1 definition Diagnostic criteria applied to define the specific condition / phenotype represented in the case (exposed) group
These refers to gibbon species living in suboptimal habitats with lower and more variable fruit availability, relying more on leaves. They had the lowest monthly fruit intake. This group consumed low proportion of leaf per month.

Lab analysis

Statistical Analysis

Signature 1

Reviewed Marked as Reviewed by KateRasheed on 2025-4-29

Curated date: 2025/03/03

Curator: KateRasheed

Revision editor(s): KateRasheed

Source: Fig. 5, Supplementary Table 6

Description: Linear Discriminant Analysis Effect Size (LEfSe) analyses revealed significant contributions to the differences in abundance across various bacteria taxonomic levels, from phylum to genus, among different gibbon species with varying proportions of leaf consumption.

Abundance in Group 1: increased abundance in Low feeding group - Hoolock tianxing

NCBI Quality ControlLinks
Acholeplasma
Acholeplasmataceae
Acholeplasmatales
Alloprevotella
Anaeroplasma
Atopobiaceae
Atopobium
Bacilli
Bacteroidaceae
Bacteroides
Candidatus Gastranaerophilales
Candidatus Gastranaerophilales bacterium
Clostridiaceae
Coprococcus
Coprococcus eutactus
Cyanobacteriota
Eubacteriales
Lachnospiraceae bacterium NK3A20
Sarcina
Vampirovibriophyceae
unclassified Bacteroides
unclassified Clostridia
unclassified Sarcina
unclassified Sutterella
uncultured bacterium
uncultured rumen bacterium
Erysipelatoclostridiaceae UCG-004Erysipelatoclostridiaceae UCG-004
Clostridia UCG-014Clostridia UCG-014
unclassified Prevotellaceae UCG-001unclassified Prevotellaceae UCG-001
unclassified Lachnospiraceae NK3A20unclassified Lachnospiraceae NK3A20
unclassified Clostridia UCG-014unclassified Clostridia UCG-014

Revision editor(s): KateRasheed

Experiment 6


Reviewed Marked as Reviewed by KateRasheed on 2025-4-29

Curated date: 2025/03/04

Curator: KateRasheed

Revision editor(s): KateRasheed

Differences from previous experiment shown

Subjects

Host species Species from which microbiome was sampled. Contact us to have more species added.
Nomascus hainanus


Group 0 name Corresponds to the control (unexposed) group for case-control studies
High + Middle feeding group - Nomascus hainanus
Group 1 name Corresponds to the case (exposed) group for case-control studies
Low feeding group - Nomascus hainanus
Group 1 definition Diagnostic criteria applied to define the specific condition / phenotype represented in the case (exposed) group
These refers to gibbon species living in high-quality (Nomascus hainanus) habitats with stable fruit production; who consumed low proportion of leaf per month.

Lab analysis

Statistical Analysis

Signature 1

Reviewed Marked as Reviewed by KateRasheed on 2025-4-29

Curated date: 2025/03/04

Curator: KateRasheed

Revision editor(s): KateRasheed

Source: Fig. 5, Supplementary Table 6

Description: Linear Discriminant Analysis Effect Size (LEfSe) analyses revealed significant contributions to the differences in abundance across various bacteria taxonomic levels, from phylum to genus, among different gibbon species with varying proportions of leaf consumption.

Abundance in Group 1: increased abundance in Low feeding group - Nomascus hainanus

NCBI Quality ControlLinks
Actinomycetota
Alloprevotella
Bacteroidaceae
Bacteroidales
Bacteroides
Collinsella
Coriobacteriaceae
Coriobacteriales
Coriobacteriia
Eubacterium coprostanoligenes
Lachnospiraceae
Oscillospiraceae
Prevotella
Prevotellaceae
Subdoligranulum
unclassified Bacteroides
unclassified Collinsella
unclassified Prevotellaceae
unclassified Subdoligranulum
uncultured Lachnospira sp.
uncultured bacterium
uncultured organism
Prevotellaceae UCG-001Prevotellaceae UCG-001
Prevotellaceae NK3B31_groupPrevotellaceae NK3B31_group
Erysipelatoclostridiaceae UCG-004Erysipelatoclostridiaceae UCG-004
unclassified Prevotellaceae UCG-001unclassified Prevotellaceae UCG-001
unclassified Prevotellaceae NK3B331 groupunclassified Prevotellaceae NK3B331 group

Revision editor(s): KateRasheed

Experiment 7


Reviewed Marked as Reviewed by KateRasheed on 2025-4-29

Curated date: 2025/03/04

Curator: KateRasheed

Revision editor(s): KateRasheed

Differences from previous experiment shown

Subjects

Host species Species from which microbiome was sampled. Contact us to have more species added.
Nomascus concolor


Group 0 name Corresponds to the control (unexposed) group for case-control studies
Low + Middle feeding group - Nomascus concolor
Group 1 name Corresponds to the case (exposed) group for case-control studies
High feeding group - Nomascus concolor
Group 1 definition Diagnostic criteria applied to define the specific condition / phenotype represented in the case (exposed) group
These refers to gibbon species living in suboptimal habitats with lower and more variable fruit availability, relying more on leaves. They consumed high proportion of leaf per month.

Lab analysis

Statistical Analysis

Signature 1

Reviewed Marked as Reviewed by KateRasheed on 2025-4-29

Curated date: 2025/03/05

Curator: KateRasheed

Revision editor(s): KateRasheed

Source: Fig. 5, Supplementary Table 6

Description: Linear Discriminant Analysis Effect Size (LEfSe) analyses revealed significant contributions to the differences in abundance across various bacteria taxonomic levels, from phylum to genus, among different gibbon species with varying proportions of leaf consumption.

Abundance in Group 1: increased abundance in High feeding group - Nomascus concolor

NCBI Quality ControlLinks
Actinomycetota
Asteroleplasma
Bacteria
Butyricicoccaceae
Candidatus Gastranaerophilales
Candidatus Gastranaerophilales bacterium
Clostridia
Coprobacillaceae
Coriobacteriales
Coriobacteriia
Cyanobacteriota
Cyanophyceae
Eggerthellaceae
Erysipelotrichaceae
Erysipelotrichales
Eubacteriales
Lachnospiraceae
Oscillospiraceae
Solobacterium
Subdoligranulum
Vampirovibriophyceae
unclassified Cyanobacteriota
unclassified Oscillospiraceae
unclassified Subdoligranulum
uncultured Eggerthellaceae bacterium
uncultured Erysipelotrichaceae bacterium
uncultured Lachnospira sp.
uncultured bacterium
Butyricicoccaceae UCG-008Butyricicoccaceae UCG-008
Lachnospiraceae bacterium NK3A20
unclassified Lachnospiraceae NK3A20 groupunclassified Lachnospiraceae NK3A20 group

Revision editor(s): KateRasheed

Experiment 8


Reviewed Marked as Reviewed by KateRasheed on 2025-4-29

Curated date: 2025/03/04

Curator: KateRasheed

Revision editor(s): KateRasheed

Differences from previous experiment shown

Subjects

Group 0 name Corresponds to the control (unexposed) group for case-control studies
Low + High feeding group - Nomascus concolor
Group 1 name Corresponds to the case (exposed) group for case-control studies
Middle feeding group - Nomascus concolor
Group 1 definition Diagnostic criteria applied to define the specific condition / phenotype represented in the case (exposed) group
These refers to gibbon species living in suboptimal habitats with lower and more variable fruit availability, relying more on leaves. They consumed middle (not high or low) proportion of leaf per month.

Lab analysis

Statistical Analysis

Signature 1

Reviewed Marked as Reviewed by KateRasheed on 2025-4-29

Curated date: 2025/03/05

Curator: KateRasheed

Revision editor(s): KateRasheed

Source: Fig. 5, Supplementary Table 6

Description: Linear Discriminant Analysis Effect Size (LEfSe) analyses revealed significant contributions to the differences in abundance across various bacteria taxonomic levels, from phylum to genus, among different gibbon species with varying proportions of leaf consumption.

Abundance in Group 1: increased abundance in Middle feeding group - Nomascus concolor

NCBI Quality ControlLinks
uncultured Anaeroplasmataceae bacterium

Revision editor(s): KateRasheed

Experiment 9


Reviewed Marked as Reviewed by KateRasheed on 2025-4-29

Curated date: 2025/03/04

Curator: KateRasheed

Revision editor(s): KateRasheed

Differences from previous experiment shown

Subjects

Host species Species from which microbiome was sampled. Contact us to have more species added.
Nomascus hainanus


Group 0 name Corresponds to the control (unexposed) group for case-control studies
High + Low feeding group - Nomascus hainanus
Group 1 name Corresponds to the case (exposed) group for case-control studies
Middle feeding group - Nomascus hainanus
Group 1 definition Diagnostic criteria applied to define the specific condition / phenotype represented in the case (exposed) group
These refers to gibbon species living in high-quality (Nomascus hainanus) habitats with stable fruit production; who consumed middle (not high or low) proportion of leaf per month.

Lab analysis

Statistical Analysis

Signature 1

Reviewed Marked as Reviewed by KateRasheed on 2025-4-29

Curated date: 2025/03/05

Curator: KateRasheed

Revision editor(s): KateRasheed

Source: Fig. 5, Supplementary Table 6

Description: Linear Discriminant Analysis Effect Size (LEfSe) analyses revealed significant contributions to the differences in abundance across various bacteria taxonomic levels, from phylum to genus, among different gibbon species with varying proportions of leaf consumption.

Abundance in Group 1: increased abundance in Middle feeding group - Nomascus hainanus

NCBI Quality ControlLinks
Anaerobutyricum hallii
Butyricicoccaceae
Tyzzerella
uncultured bacterium
uncultured rumen bacterium
Butyricicoccaceae UCG-008Butyricicoccaceae UCG-008
unclassifed Anaerobutyricum halliiunclassifed Anaerobutyricum hallii
Lachnospiraceae bacterium NK3A20

Revision editor(s): KateRasheed