Dispersal limitation promotes the diversification of the mammalian gut microbiota.

ABSTRACT: The gut bacterial communities of mammals have profound effects on host fitness, but the processes that generate and maintain gut bacterial diversity remain poorly understood. We mapped compositional variation (i.e., β-diversity) in the gut microbiotas of 136 pairs of wild mammalian species living throughout the Americas to assess how the distribution of mammals across geographic space influences the diversification of their gut bacteria. Comparing the gut microbiotas of sympatric and allopatric mammalian populations provided insights into the flow of gut bacteria within and between mammalian communities, revealing that spatial limits on bacterial dispersal promote β-diversity between the gut microbiotas of mammalian species. Each geographic locale displayed a unique gut-microbiota composit

SUBMITTER: Moeller AH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5748161 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature