Data_Sheet_1_Intergenerational Transfer of Persistent Bacterial Communities in Female Nile Tilapia.docx

Resident microbial communities that can support various host functions play a key role in their development and health. In fishes, microbial symbionts are vertically transferred from the parents to their progeny. Such transfer of microbes in mouthbrooder fish species has not been reported yet. Here, we employed Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) to investigate the vertical transmission of microbes across generations using a 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing approach, based on the presence of bacteria in different generations. Our analysis revealed that the core microbiome in the buccal cavity and posterior intestine of parents shapes the gut microbiome of the progeny across generations. We speculate that the route of this transmission is via the buccal cavity. The identified core microbiome bacteria, namely Nocardioides, Propionibacterium, and Sphingomonas have been reported to play an essential role in the health and development of offspring. These core microbiome members could have specific functions in fish, similar to mammals.

宿主功能支持的各种栖居微生物群落，在宿主生长发育与健康过程中发挥着关键作用。在鱼类中，微生物共生体通过亲代垂直传递给子代。目前，关于口孵鱼类的微生物垂直传递尚未有报道。本研究采用尼罗罗非鱼（Oreochromis niloticus）为研究对象，通过16S rRNA扩增子测序技术，基于不同代际细菌的存在，探究微生物的垂直传播。我们的分析发现，亲代口腔和后肠的核心微生物群构成了跨越多代的子代肠道微生物群。我们推测，这种传播途径是通过口腔进行的。所鉴定的核心微生物群细菌，包括诺卡氏菌（Nocardioides）、丙酸杆菌（Propionibacterium）和鞘氨醇单胞菌（Sphingomonas），已被报道在后代健康与发育中扮演着至关重要的角色。这些核心微生物群成员在鱼类中可能具有特定的功能，类似于哺乳动物。