Effect of sex on the gut microbiota of Tibetan antelopes

Gut microbiota plays a crucial role in host physiological homeostasis and is influenced by many factors. We employed high-throughput sequencing of the 16S rDNA and bioinformatic analysis to investigate the composition and abundance of the gut microbiota of male and female Tibetan antelopes (Pantholops hodgsonii).The results showed that 6 896 OTUs were obtained from female, 5 609 OTUs from male, and 2 650 OTUs were shared between male and female. Female Tibetan antelopes had a higher bacterial richness than males (P Aeromonas, Pseudomonas, and Methylobacterium, in the intestinal tract of male Tibetan antelope was significantly higher than that of female (P _UCG, Akkermansia, and Peptococcus, in the intestinal tract of female Tibetan antelope was significantly higher than that of male (P < 0.05). Principal coordinate analysis revealed a significant difference in the structure of the intestinal flora between the two groups, and the reproducibility of female samples was better than that of male samples. Functional prediction analyses revealed that the gut microbiota of Tibetan antelopes was mainly involved in carbohydrate metabolism, amino acid metabolism, metabolism of cofactors and vitamins, metabolism of terpenoids and polyketides, and no significant differences in metabolic pathways were found between females and males. This study explored associations between sex of the host and their gut microbiota, which may provide a reference for further understanding of the adaptive evolutionary mechanism of Tibetan antelopes to extreme high-altitude environments.