Research

March 14, 2025

Study reveals microbial adaptation mechanism of plateau animals

XINING,  March 13 (Xinhua) -- A new study has uncovered the substantial impact  of altitude on the gut microbiota of the plateau pika, a small mammal,  on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau in the west of China, helping to reveal the  microbial adaptation mechanism of plateau animals. 

The  study, conducted by researchers from the Northwest Institute of Plateau  Biology (NWIPB) under the Chinese Academy of Sciences, was published in  the journal Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology Part D: Genomics  and Proteomics.

The  Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, with its low oxygen, low temperature and  scarcity of food, poses severe challenges to the physiological  adaptation of animals -- in which gut microbiota plays a crucial role.

An  in-depth exploration of how altitude changes affect the gut microbiota  of plateau animals is crucial for uncovering the microbial ecological  mechanisms involved in the adaption of animals to plateau environments,  according to Qu Jiapeng, NWIPB researcher and leader of the study.

Researchers  investigated variations in terms of gut microbial community structure  and function in the plateau pika across altitudes on the Qinghai-Tibet  Plateau. They analysed the structure, function and metabolic  characteristics of gut microbiota at different altitudes by using 16S  rRNA sequencing and short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) content analyses.

The  study found that the diversity and complexity of gut microbiota in the  plateau pika decreased significantly with increasing altitude, while  their high-altitude adaptation was enhanced through enriched gut  microbiota and the upregulation of key metabolic pathways.

"The  study is not only of significance in discovering the ecological  adaptation of the plateau pika, but also sheds light on understanding  small mammals' adaptation mechanisms to high-altitude environments," Qu  said. 

This  photo taken on July 5, 2023 shows a plateau pika in the Altun Mountains  National Nature Reserve in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous  Region. (Xinhua/Wang Peng)

Source: Xinhua


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