Role of sex, aging, and environment on microbiome diversity in mice

The goal of this study is to characterize and compare the microbiomes of male and female BALB/c-ByJ mice in two age groups (young and old). Additionally, male and female mice were purchased from the same source and housed in identical AAALAC-approved facilities but aged in two different geographical locations. We preformed a 16s rRNA analysis to explore the microbiome diversity of these animals. We hypothesize mouse microbiomes will differ between age groups and/or between sexes and may also be influenced by geographical location.