gut diazotrophs and whole gut microbiota
Invertebrates such as termites or insect larvae feeding on nutrient-poor substrate receive essential nitrogen in forms of bioactive compounds such as hormones and enzymes produced by gut diazotrophs. However, diversity and composition of gut diazotrophs in digestive tracts of vertebrates such as Plateau pika living in nutrient-poor Qinghai-Tibet Plateau remains unknown. To fill this knowledge gap, we studied gut diazotrophs and whole gut microorganisms of Plateau pika (Ochotona curzoniae) and its related species, Daurian pika (Ochotona daurica), Hares (Lepus europaeus) and Rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) by high-throughput amplicon sequencing methods. We analyzed whether the gut diazotrophs and the whole gut microbial community of Plateau pika are affected by altitude, species and season, and explored the relationship between gut diazotrophs and whole gut microbiomes. Our study showed that Firmicutes were the dominant group in both gut diazotrophs and whole gut microbiome. Spirochaetes were second dominant gut diazotrophs, while Bacteroidetes were the second dominant group among whole gut microorganisms. Season significantly affected the alpha diversity of gut diazotrophs, but altitude and species did not clearly affect the gut diazotrophs.