@article{f93bfa96b41444bcbdc6f3a53b106b8e,
title = "Gut microbiota in wild and captive Guizhou snub-nosed monkeys, Rhinopithecus brelichi",
abstract = "Many colobine species—including the endangered Guizhou snub-nosed monkey (Rhinopithecus brelichi) are difficult to maintain in captivity and frequently exhibit gastrointestinal (GI) problems. GI problems are commonly linked to alterations in the gut microbiota, which lead us to examine the gut microbial communities of wild and captive R. brelichi. We used high-throughput sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene to compare the gut microbiota of wild (N = 7) and captive (N = 8) R. brelichi. Wild monkeys exhibited increased gut microbial diversity based on the Chao1 but not Shannon diversity metric and greater relative abundances of bacteria in the Lachnospiraceae and Ruminococcaceae families. Microbes in these families digest complex plant materials and produce butyrate, a short chain fatty acid critical to colonocyte health. Captive monkeys had greater relative abundances of Prevotella and Bacteroides species, which degrade simple sugars and carbohydrates, like those present in fruits and cornmeal, two staples of the captive R. brelichi diet. Captive monkeys also had a greater abundance of Akkermansia species, a microbe that can thrive in the face of host malnutrition. Taken together, these findings suggest that poor health in captive R. brelichi may be linked to diet and an altered gut microbiota.",
keywords = "Guizhou snub-nosed monkey, Rhinopithecus brelichi, captivity, gut microbiota",
author = "Hale, {Vanessa L.} and Tan, {Chia L.} and Kefeng Niu and Yeqin Yang and Qikun Zhang and Rob Knight and Amato, {Katherine R.}",
note = "Funding Information: We thank Richard D. Howard for his support of this project and many thoughtful suggestions on the manuscript. We also thank the reviewers for their time and insights which greatly improved this study. We would like to thank Bong Suk-Kim for his guidance and Gaenna Rogers for her help in the laboratory. This project was funded by the Margot Marsh Biodiversity Foundation (2010 and 2013), San Diego Zoo Global, the Offield Family Foundation, LVDI International, the Earth Microbiome Project, and Fanjingshan National Nature Reserve. VLH was supported by a Purdue University Andrews Fellowship and a Purdue Research Foundation Research Grant. Funding Information: We thank Richard D. Howard for his support of this project and many thoughtful suggestions on the manuscript. We also thank the reviewers for their time and insights which greatly improved this study. We would like to thank Bong Suk‐Kim for his guidance and Gaenna Rogers for her help in the laboratory. This project was funded by the Margot Marsh Biodiversity Foundation (2010 and 2013), San Diego Zoo Global, the Offield Family Foundation, LVDI International, the Earth Microbiome Project, and Fanjingshan National Nature Reserve. VLH was supported by a Purdue University Andrews Fellowship and a Purdue Research Foundation Research Grant. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.",
year = "2019",
month = oct,
day = "1",
doi = "10.1002/ajp.22989",
language = "English (US)",
volume = "81",
journal = "American Journal of Primatology",
issn = "0275-2565",
publisher = "John Wiley and Sons Inc.",
number = "10-11",
}