Fly-over phylogeny across invertebrate to vertebrate: The giant panda and insects share a highly similar gut microbiota.

Abstract

Many studies highlight that host phylogeny and diet are the two main factors influencing the animal gut microbiota. However, the internal mechanisms driving the evolution of animal gut microbiota may be more complex and complicated than we previously realized. Here, based on a large-scale meta-analysis of animal gut microbiota (16s RNA gene data from approximately 1,800 samples; 108 metagenomes) across a wide taxonomic range of hosts, from invertebrate to vertebrate, we found high similarity in the gut microbial community (high proportion of Gammaproteobacteria (Pseudomonas)) of invertebrate insects and vertebrate bamboo-eating pandas (giant panda and red panda), which might be associated their plant-eating behavior and the presence of oxygen in the intestinal tract. A Pseudomonas strain-level analysis using 108 metagenomes further revealed that the response to either host niches or selection by the host might further lead to host-specific strains (or sub-strains) among the different hosts congruent with their evolutionary history. In this study, we uncovered new insights into the current understanding of the evolution of animals and their gut microbiota.