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Phylogenetic analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequences reveals distal gut bacterial diversity in wild wolves (Canis lupus)

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Abstract

The aim of this study was to describe the microbial communities in the distal gut of wild wolves (Canis lupus). Fecal samples were collected from three healthy unrelated adult wolves captured at the nearby of Dalai Lake Nature Reserve in Inner Mongolia of China. The diversity of fecal bacteria was investigated by constructing PCR-amplified 16S rRNA gene clone libraries using the universal bacterial primers 27 F and 1493 R. A total of 307 non-chimeric near-full-length 16S rRNA gene sequences were analyzed and 65 non-redundant bacteria phylotypes (operational taxonomical units, OTUs) were identified. Seventeen OTUs (26%) showed less than 98% sequence similarity to 16S rRNA gene sequences were reported previously. Five different bacterial phyla were identified, with the majority of OTUs being classified within the phylum Firmicutes (60%), followed by Bacteroidetes (16.9%), Proteobacteria (9.2%), Fusobacteria (9.2%) and Actinobacteria (4.6%). The majority of clones fell within the order Clostridiales (53.8% of OTUs). It was predominantly affiliated with five families: Lachnospiraceae was the most diverse bacterial family in this order, followed by Ruminococcaceae, Clostridiaceae, Peptococcaceae and Peptostreptococcaceae.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the Program for New Century Excellent Talents in China (NCET-07-0507), the Natural Science Foundation in Shandong Province of China (Z2008D01) and the Project of Science and Technology Development Plan in Shandong Province of China (2007GG2009011).

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  1. College of Life Science, Qufu Normal University, Qufu, 273165, China

    Honghai Zhang & Lei Chen

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  1. Honghai Zhang
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  2. Lei Chen
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Correspondence to Honghai Zhang.

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Honghai Zhang, Lei Chen contributed equally to this work.

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Zhang, H., Chen, L. Phylogenetic analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequences reveals distal gut bacterial diversity in wild wolves (Canis lupus). Mol Biol Rep 37, 4013–4022 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11033-010-0060-z

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