Distinct host-pathogen and microbiome responses of aoudad (Ammotragus lervia) and bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis) following exposure to Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae

Pathogens can shape their host communities over various timescales. The potential role of host-pathogen coevolution in driving contemporary shifts in disease ecology is becoming increasingly important as host species emerge and persist outside their native ranges. In North America, Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae can cause fatal pneumonia epizootics in native bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis), whereas introduced free-ranging sympatric aoudad (Ammotragus lervia) typically act as asymptomatic reservoirs. To elucidate the role of host\'96pathogen coevolution in shaping these observed patterns of host impacts, we integrated findings on microbiome composition and host transcriptomic responses in aoudad and bighorn sheep following controlled exposure to M. ovipneumoniae, with or without leukotoxigenic Pasteurellaceae.