Dietary niche breadth influences the effects of urbanization on the gut microbiota of sympatric rodents.

ABSTRACT: Cities are among the most extreme forms of anthropogenic ecosystem modification, and urbanization processes exert profound effects on animal populations through multiple ecological pathways. Increased access to human-associated food items may alter species' foraging behavior and diet, in turn modifying the normal microbial community of the gastrointestinal tract (GIT), ultimately impacting their health. It is crucial we understand the role of dietary niche breadth and the resulting shift in the gut microbiota as urban animals navigate novel dietary resources. We combined stable isotope analysis of hair and microbiome analysis of four gut regions across the GIT to investigate the effects of urbanization on the diet and gut microbiota of two sympatric species of rodents with different dietar

SUBMITTER: Anders JL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9463044 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature