My co-authors and I are pleased to announce our recent publication in
ISME-Journal:
Carolyn A. Miller, Henry C. Holm, Lara Horstmann, J. Craig George, Helen
F. Fredricks, Benjamin A. S. Van Mooy, Amy Apprill.
Coordinated transformation of the gut microbiome and lipidome of bowhead
whales provides novel insights into digestion. /ISME J/ (2019)
doi:10.1038/s41396-019-0549-y
Abstract: Whale digestion plays an integral role in many ocean
ecosystems. By digesting enormous quantities of lipid-rich prey, whales
support their energy intensive lifestyle, but also excrete nutrients
important to ocean biogeochemical cycles. Nevertheless, whale digestion
is poorly understood. Gastrointestinal microorganisms play a significant
role in vertebrate digestion, but few studies have examined them in
whales. To investigate digestion of lipids, and the potential
contribution of microbes to lipid digestion in whales, we characterized
lipid composition (lipidomes) and bacterial communities (microbiotas) in
126 digesta samples collected throughout the gastrointestinal tracts of
38 bowhead whales (/Balaena mysticetus/) harvested by Alaskan Eskimos.
Lipidomes and microbiotas were strongly correlated throughout the
gastrointestinal tract. Lipidomes and microbiotas were most variable in
the small intestine and most similar in the large intestine, where
microbiota richness was greatest. Our results suggest digestion of wax
esters, the primary lipids in /B. mysticetus/ prey representing more
than 80% of total dietary lipids, occurred in the mid- to distal small
intestine and was correlated with specific microorganisms. Because wax
esters are difficult to digest by other marine vertebrates and
constitute a large reservoir of carbon in the ocean, our results further
elucidate the essential roles that whales and their gastrointestinal
microbiotas play in the biogeochemical cycling of carbon and nutrients
in high-latitude seas.
The paper is available through open access at:
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41396-019-0549-y
<https://www.nature.com/articles/s41396-019-0549-y,,>
Kind regards,
Carolyn Miller
Carolyn A. Miller, Ph.D.
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
Department of Marine Chemistry and Geochemistry
Mail Stop #4
266 Woods Hole Road
Woods Hole, MA 02543
cmil...@whoi.edu <mailto:cmil...@whoi.edu>
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