16S rRNA Gene Sequencing of Gut Microbiota in Recipient Rats after Fecal Microbiota Transplantation from Gypenosides-Treated or PCOS-Model Donors
Gut microbiota has been recognized as a key mediator in the pathogenesis of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). However, causal evidence that specific microbiota alterations can transfer either disease or therapeutic effects remains incomplete. In this study, we conducted a bidirectional fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) experiment using a letrozole-induced PCOS rat model. Normal recipient rats were pretreated with a broad-spectrum antibiotic cocktail (ampicillin, neomycin, metronidazole, vancomycin) for 7 days to deplete endogenous gut microbiota, followed by transplantation of PCOS-model donor microbiota (FMT-PCOS group, n = 6). Separately, PCOS recipient rats were similarly pretreated and transplanted with GPs-conditioned donor microbiota (FMT-GPs group, n = 6). Fecal samples were collected from recipient rats after FMT, and the V3-V4 hypervariable region of the bacterial 16S rRNA gene was amplified and sequenced on an Illumina platform. The submitted dataset comprises raw sequencing files (FASTQ format) and sample metadata from 12 samples (6 per group). The objectives are to: 1) compare the gut microbial composition, alpha-diversity, and beta-diversity between FMT-GPs and FMT-PCOS recipient rats; 2) identify specific bacterial taxa (e.g., Lactobacillus, Romboutsia) that are enriched by GPs-conditioned microbiota or depleted in PCOS-conditioned microbiota; and 3) provide causal evidence that GPs-reprogrammed gut microbiota is sufficient to restore a beneficial microbial community structure, while PCOS-associated microbiota can transfer dysbiosis to normal recipients.