The gut microbiota is shaped by host metabolism. In house mice (Mus musculus), major urinary protein (MUP) pheromone production represents a considerable energy investment, particularly in sexually mature males. Deletion of the Mup gene family shifts mouse metabolism towards an anabolic state, marked by lipogenesis, lipid accumulation, and body mass increases. Given the metabolic implications of MUPs, they may also influence the gut microbiota. Here, we investigated the effect of deletion of the Mup gene family on the gut microbiota of sexually mature mice. Shotgun metagenomics revealed distinct taxonomic and functional profiles between wildtype and knockout males, but not females. Deletion of the Mup gene cluster significantly reduced diversity in microbial families and functions in male mice. Additionally, specific taxa of the Ruminococcaceae family, which is associated with gut health and reduced risk of developing metabolic syndrome, and several microbial functions, such as transporters involved in vitamin B5 acquisition, were significantly depleted in the microbiota of Mup-knockout males. Altogether these results show that major urinary proteins significantly affect the gut microbiota of house mouse in a sex-specific manner.
Experiment 1
Subjects
- Location of subjects
- United States of America
- Host species Species from which microbiome was sampled. Contact us to have more species added.
- Mus musculus
- Body site Anatomical site where microbial samples were extracted from according to the Uber Anatomy Ontology
- Hindgut , Midgut , Foregut Metenteron,Hindgut,hindgut,Mesenteron,Midgut,midgut,Praeenteron,Proenteron,Foregut,foregut
- Group 0 name Corresponds to the control (unexposed) group for case-control studies
- male mice
- Group 1 name Corresponds to the case (exposed) group for case-control studies
- female mice
- Group 1 definition Diagnostic criteria applied to define the specific condition / phenotype represented in the case (exposed) group
- female mice, including knock out and wild
- Group 0 sample size Number of subjects in the control (unexposed) group
- 10
- Group 1 sample size Number of subjects in the case (exposed) group
- 9
Lab analysis
- Sequencing type
- WMS
- 16S variable region One or more hypervariable region(s) of the bacterial 16S gene
- Not specified
- Sequencing platform Manufacturer and experimental platform used for quantifying microbial abundance
- MGISEQ-2000
Statistical Analysis
- Data transformation Data transformation applied to microbial abundance measurements prior to differential abundance testing (if any).
- relative abundances
- Statistical test
- Mann-Whitney (Wilcoxon)
- Mixed-Effects Regression
- PERMANOVA
- 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)?
- No
Alpha Diversity
- Pielou Quantifies how equal the community is numerically
- decreased
- Shannon Estimator of species richness and species evenness: more weight on species richness
- decreased
- Richness Number of species
- decreased