Hirudo nipponia Metagenome. Hirudo nipponia

Hirudo nipponia, a Chinese species that have commonly been known as traditional Chinese anticoagulant medicines for thousands of years. It has extremely strong anticoagulant activity and anti-platelet aggregation. However, with the rapid development of socio-economics and the deterioration of the environment, the yield of wild Hirudo nipponica has dwindled over the years. The pharmacology, physiology and breeding of Hirudo nipponia have been studied extensively for decades, but information on the gut microbiota of hirudo nipponica has not been reported. In the present research, we utilize 16S rRNA gene pyrosequencing to further explore the microbial composition of the leech digestive tract.

日本医蛭（Hirudo nipponia）是中国本土物种，数千年来一直被用作传统抗凝血中药材。该物种具有极强的抗凝血活性与抗血小板聚集能力。然而，随着社会经济的快速发展与生态环境的持续恶化，野生日本医蛭的种群产量逐年锐减。数十年来，学界已针对日本医蛭的药理学特性、生理机制及人工繁育技术开展了大量研究，但目前尚未见关于其肠道微生物群的相关报道。本研究采用16S rRNA基因焦磷酸测序（16S rRNA gene pyrosequencing）技术，深入探究该蛭类消化道的微生物群落组成。