Metagenomics assessment of WKY and SHR rodents

The microbiome plays a significant role in gut brain communication and is linked to several animal and human diseases. Hypertension is characterized by gut dysbiosis, and this study aimed to determine how the gut microbiome differed between male and female normotensive and hypertensive rodents. WKY is a genetic control for spontaneous hypertensive rats or SHR which is well documented to have elevated blood pressure at approximately 8 to 10 weeks. We compared the microbiome of normotensive and hypertensive rodents using a meta-genomics approach. Overall design: Male and female rats from two strains were housed at University fo Florida. Cecal fecal matter was collected from both male and female rats at 14-15 weeks. Blood pressure, feces, and weights were collected throughout the experiment and at endpoint plasma, colons, brains, and cecal fecal contents were collected. Feces were processed as below for metagenomics. Samples sizes were the following: male WKY (n=7), male SHR (n=7), female WKY (n=9), female SHR (n=10)