以色列魏茨曼科学研究院Eran Segal团队绘制出野生动物微生物群的多样性和功能性图谱。相关论文于2021年3月25日在线发表在《科学》杂志上。

研究人员使用宏基因组学来分析了野外180多种物种的肠道菌群，涵盖了不同的类别、进食行为、地理和性状。使用从头基因组组装，研究人员构建并在功能上注释了5,000多个基因组的数据库，其中包括1,209种细菌，有75％是未知的。

微生物的组成、多样性和功能含量与动物分类、饮食、活动、社会结构和寿命相关。研究人员认为，野生动物的肠道菌群是发现疗法和生物技术应用的主要资源。 

据介绍，野生动物能够食用感染病原体的有毒食物，并表现出对各种疾病的免疫力。这些可能是由于它们的微生物群，但人们对动物微生物的多样性和功能了解甚少。

附：英文原文

Title: Diversity and functional landscapes in the microbiota of animals in the wild

Author: Doron Levin, Neta Raab, Yishay Pinto, Daphna Rothschild, Gal Zanir, Anastasia Godneva, Nadav Mellul, David Futorian, Doran Gal, Sigal Leviatan, David Zeevi, Ido Bachelet, Eran Segal

Issue&Volume: 2021/03/25

Abstract: Animals in the wild are able to subsist on pathogen-infected and poisonous food and show immunity to various diseases. These may be due to their microbiota, yet we have a poor understanding of animal microbial diversity and function. We used metagenomics to analyze the gut microbiota of over 180 species in the wild, covering diverse classes, feeding behaviors, geographies, and traits. Using de novo metagenome assembly, we constructed and functionally annotated a database of over 5,000 genomes, comprising 1,209 bacterial species of which 75% are unknown. The microbial composition, diversity, and functional content exhibit associations with animal taxonomy, diet, activity, social structure and lifespan. We identify the gut microbiota of wild animals as a largely untapped resource for the discovery of therapeutics and biotechnology applications.

DOI: 10.1126/science.abb5352

Source: https://science.sciencemag.org/content/early/2021/03/24/science.abb5352