Effects of Laboratory Rearing on Gut Microbiota and Tracheal Microbiota in Wild Chipmunks
Understanding the effects of laboratory domestication on wild animals is essential, they are affected by changes in environment, diet and other factors during the domestication in the laboratory, which may reshape their internal microbiota and affect the body's metabolism. Using 16S rRNA gene sequencing, we analyzed gut and tracheal microbiota from wild and lab-domesticated chipmunks, examining changes in serology, histopathology, fat metabolism, and muscle quality.