Composition of micro-eukaryotes on the skin of the Cascades frog (Rana cascadae) and patterns of correlation between skin microbes and Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis

Global amphibian decline linked to fungal pathogens has galvanized research on applied amphibian conservation. Skin-associated bacterial communities of amphibians have been shown to mediate fungal skin infections and the development of probiotic treatments with antifungal bacteria has become an emergent area of research. While exploring the role of protective bacteria has been a primary focus for amphibian conservation, we aim to expand and study the other microbes present in amphibian skin communities including fungi and other micro-eukaryotes. Here, we characterize skin-associated bacteria and micro-eukaryotic diversity found across life stages of Cascades frog (Rana cascadae) and their associated aquatic environments using culture independent 16S and 18S rRNA marker-gene sequencing. Individuals of various life stages of Cascades frogs were sampled from a population located in the Trinity Alps in Northern California during an epidemic of the chytrid fungus, Batrachochytrium dendrobati...

与真菌病原体相关的全球两栖动物种群衰退，推动了两栖动物保护应用研究的发展。两栖动物的皮肤相关细菌群落已被证实可调控真菌性皮肤感染的发生发展，而开发抗真菌细菌基益生菌疗法已成为新兴研究热点。尽管探索保护性细菌的作用一直是两栖动物保护研究的核心方向，但本研究旨在拓展研究范畴，对两栖动物皮肤群落中除细菌外的其他微生物（包括真菌与其他微真核生物）展开分析。本研究采用非培养依赖型16S核糖体RNA（16S rRNA）与18S核糖体RNA（18S rRNA）标记基因测序技术，对喀斯喀特蛙（Rana cascadae）不同生命阶段个体及其关联水生环境中的皮肤相关细菌与微真核生物多样性进行表征分析。本研究在北加州三一阿尔卑斯地区的蛙种群暴发壶菌（Batrachochytrium dendrobati）流行病期间，采集了该种群不同生命阶段的喀斯喀特蛙个体样本。