Stomach and colonic microbiome of wild Japanese macaques

Abstract

Within the gastrointestinal tract, the physiochemical microenvironments are highly diversified among the different stages of food digestion. Accordingly, gut microbiome composition and function vary at different gut sites. In this study, we examine and compare the compositional and functional potential between the stomach and colonic microbiome of wild Japanese macaques (Macaca fuscata yakui) living in the evergreen forest of Yakushima Island. We find a significantly lower microbial diversity in the stomach than in the colon, possibly due to the stomach's acidic and aerobic environment, which is suboptimal for microbial survival. According to past studies, the microbial taxa enriched in the stomach are aero- and acid-tolerant. By functional prediction through PICRUSt2, we reveal that the stomach microbiome is more enriched in pathways relating to the metabolism of simple sugars. On the contrary, the colonic microbiota is more enriched with fiber-degrading microbes, such as those from Lachnospiracea, Ruminococcaceae, and Prevotella. Our study shows a clear difference in the microbiome between the stomach and colon of Japanese macaques in both composition and function. This study provides a preliminary look at the alpha diversity and taxonomic composition within the stomach microbiome of Japanese macaques, a hindgut-fermenting nonhuman primate.