Analysis of the intestinal microbiota of roe deer with different stress level

We investigated how the intestinal microbiota of roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) changed under stress. The fecal samples collected from the animals were divided into 2 groups (N=30) according to the level of 11-oxoetiocholanone in the blood (lower stress level vs. higher stress level). NGS based on the V3-V4 region of the 16S rRNA gene was performed within the NovaSeq 6000 platform. Further bioinformatic analyses demonstrated a lack of significant differences in alpha diversity between groups categorized by stress level; however, there were the most significant differences in relative abundance of several taxa at the genus level. Functional analysis also showed significant changes between groups, including anaerobic and biofilm formation traits.