Abstract
Adenovirus (AdV) infections are one of the main causes of diarrhea in young children. Enteric AdVs probably disrupt gut microbial defences, which can result in diarrhea. To understand the role of the gut microbiome in AdV-induced pathologies, we investigated the gut microbiome of a naturally AdV-infected non-human primate species, the Malagasy mouse lemur (Microcebus griseorufus), which represents an important model in understanding the evolution of diseases. We observed that AdV infection is associated with disruption of the gut microbial community composition. In AdV+ lemurs, several commensal taxa essential for a healthy gut microbiome decreased, whereas genera containing potential pathogens, such as Neisseria, increased in abundance. Microbial co-occurrence networks revealed a loss of important microbial community interactions in AdV+ lemurs and an overrepresentation of Prevotellaceae. The observation of enteric virus-associated loss of commensal bacteria and associated shifts towards pathobionts may represent the missing link for a better understanding of AdV-induced effects in humans, and also for their potential as drivers of co-infections, an area of research that has been largely neglected so far.
Highlights
Adenovirus (AdV) infections are one of the main causes of diarrhea in young children
The gut microbiome has emerged as a critical player in maintaining gut immunity and, in recent years, evidence has accumulated showing that virus infections induce gut microbiome dysbiosis[11,12,13,14,15]
By utilizing a naturally AdV-infected non-human primate model, the Malagasy grey-brown mouse lemur, we have examined, for the first time, AdV-gut microbiome interactions
Summary
Adenovirus (AdV) infections are one of the main causes of diarrhea in young children. Www.nature.com/scientificreports shown that different viral infections are linked to alterations and disruptions of the intestinal microbiome[11,12,13,14,15] This area of research is still underdeveloped and studies aiming to resolve the causes and sequelae of AdV induced gastroenteritis and the role of associated altered gut microbiomes are lacking. It has recently been shown in bats that Astrovirus infections, that may cause (like AdV) severe diarrhea in humans, can perturb the gut microbiome and induce age-dependent dysbiosis[14] Despite these important potential links, no study has so far investigated the influence of AdV on the gut microbial community and potentially age-related AdV pathologies
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