Yunwei Lu, Liang Zhang, Xu Liu, Yue Lan, Lixia Wu, Jiao Wang, Kongju Wu, Chaojie Yang, Ruiqing Lv, Dejiao Yi, Guifu Zhuo, Yan Li, Fujun Shen, Rong Hou, Bisong Yue, Zhenxin Fan
The red panda (Ailurus fulgens) is a distinctive mammal known for its reliance on a diet primarily consisting of bamboo. The gut microbiota and overall health of animals are strongly influenced by diets and environments. Therefore, conducting research to explore the taxonomical and functional variances within the gut microbiota of red pandas exposed to various dietary and environmental conditions could shed light on the dynamic complexities of their microbial communities. In this study, normal fecal samples were obtained from red pandas residing in captive and semi-free environments under different dietary regimes and used for metabolomic, 16S rRNA, and metagenomic sequencing analysis, with the pandas classified into four distinct cohorts according to diet and environment...
February 29, 2024: Integrative Zoology