Composition of the Cutaneous Bacterial Community in Japanese Amphibians: Effects of Captivity, Host Species, and Body Region.
The cutaneous microbiota plays a significant role in the biology of their vertebrate hosts, and its composition is known to be influenced both by host and environment, with captive conditions often altering alpha diversity. Here, we compare the cutaneous bacterial communities of 61 amphibians (both wild and captive) from Hiroshima, Japan, using high-throughput amplicon sequencing of a segment of the 16S rRNA gene. The majority of these samples came from a captive breeding facility at Hiroshima University where specimens from six species are maintained under highly standardized conditions for several generations. This allowed to identify host effects on the bacterial communities under near identical environmental conditions in captivity. We found the structure of the cutaneous bacterial community significantly differing between wild and captive individuals of newts, Cynops pyrrhogaster, with a higher alpha diversity found in the wild individuals. Community structure also showed distinct patterns when comparing different species of amphibians kept under highly similar conditions, revealing an intrinsic host effect. Bacterial communities of dorsal vs. ventral skin surfaces did not significantly differ in most species, but a trend of higher alpha diversity on the ventral surface was found in Oriental fire-bellied toads, Bombina orientalis. This study confirms the cutaneous microbiota of amphibians as a highly dynamic system influenced by a complex interplay of numerous factors.
Zoological Institute, Braunschweig University of Technology, Braunschweig, Germany. joanasabinopinto@gmail.com.
Joana
J
Sabino-Pinto
Zoological Institute, Braunschweig University of Technology, Braunschweig, Germany.
Molly Catherine
MC
Bletz
Institute for Amphibian Biology, Graduate School of Science, Hiroshima University, Higashi-Hiroshima, Japan.
Mohammed Mafizul
MM
Islam
Hiroshima University Museums, Hiroshima University, Higashi-Hiroshima, Japan.
Norio
N
Shimizu
Department of Genome Analytics, Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research, Braunschweig, Germany.
Sabin
S
Bhuju
Department of Genome Analytics, Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research, Braunschweig, Germany.
Robert
R
Geffers
Department of Genome Analytics, Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research, Braunschweig, Germany.
Michael
M
Jarek
Institute for Amphibian Biology, Graduate School of Science, Hiroshima University, Higashi-Hiroshima, Japan.
Atsushi
A
Kurabayashi
Zoological Institute, Braunschweig University of Technology, Braunschweig, Germany.
Miguel
M
Vences
D000818:Animals; D001001:Anura / Q000145:classification / Q000382:microbiology*; D001419:Bacteria / Q000145:classification* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D018533:Biomass; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics; D007564:Japan; D016014:Linear Models; D064307:Microbiota; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / Q000235:genetics; D012867:Skin / Q000382:microbiology*; D013045:Species Specificity
D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S
16S rRNA; Anura; Caudata; Illumina sequencing; Japan; Microbiota