Differences in bacterial diversity across indigenous and introduced ruminants in the Qinghai Tibetan plateau

2021
Context The Qinghai Tibetan plateau (QTP) is characterised as a harsh high-altitude environment inhabited by a large number of ruminants. Rumen microorganisms potentially play a vital role in the adaptation of indigenous ruminants to this harsh environment. Aims The present study aimed to investigate the diversity of rumen bacteria in ruminants (yak and Tibetan sheep) indigenous to the QTP and introduced species (cattle and crossbred sheep). Methods Rumen bacterial composition and α and β diversity of indigenous and introduced ruminants were analysed based on 16s rDNA sequence data. Key results Most of the sequences from all animals were affiliated with phylum Bacteroidetes (67.6–84.0%), followed by Firmicutes (11.6–21.0%). The β diversity (Bray–Curtis and weighted-Unifrac distance matrices) of bacteria was significantly different among ruminant species yak (Bos grunniens), cattle (Bos taurus) and sheep (Ovis aries), but there were no differences between the indigenous and introduced sheep breeds. At the genus level, Fibrobacter, Lachnospira and Pseudobutyrivibrio were more abundant (P < 0.05) in the rumen of yak, while Prevotella was significantly (P < 0.05) more abundant in cattle than in the other ruminants; enterotypes affiliated with the uncultured Ruminococcaceae and Prevotella was more dominant in the indigenous and introduced ruminants respectively. Conclusions The ruminant species was the main factor distinguishing the rumen bacterial diversity among the ruminants grazing on the QTP, although there were differences in discrete populations of bacteria between indigenous and introduced ruminants. It appears that yak, which has evolved as a distinctive species with specialised physiological and anatomical adaptations, has a rumen bacterial population that favours its survival in this extreme environment. Implications This work extends the findings of previous studies comparing microbiota from different ruminants in the QTP, and provides a basis for exploration of the interactions governing the tri-partite relationship among host, rumen microbiota and the harsh environment, and indicates the potential of rumen microbiota in assisting the adaptation of host to the harsh environment.
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