Mucin-derived O-glycans supplemented to diet mitigate diverse microbiota perturbations

Microbiota-accessible carbohydrates (MACs) are powerful modulators of microbiota composition and function. These substrates are often derived from diet, such as complex polysaccharides from plants or human milk oligosaccharides (HMOs) during breastfeeding. Host-derived mucus glycans on gut-secreted mucin proteins serve as a continuous endogenous source of MACs for resident microbes; here we investigate the potential role of purified, orally administered mucus glycans in maintaining a healthy microbial community. In this study, we liberated and purified O-linked glycans from porcine gastric mucin and assessed their efficacy in shaping the recovery of a perturbed microbiota in a mouse model. We found that porcine mucin glycans (PMGs) and HMOs enrich for taxonomically similar resident microbes. We demonstrate that PMGs aid recovery of the microbiota after antibiotic treatment, suppress Clostridium difficile abundance, delay the onset of diet-induced obesity, and increase the relative abundance of resident Akkermansia muciniphila. In silico analysis revealed that genes associated with mucus utilization are abundant and diverse in prevalent gut commensals and rare in enteric pathogens, consistent with these glycan-degrading capabilities being selected for during host development and throughout the evolution of the host–microbe relationship. Importantly, we identify mucus glycans as a novel class of prebiotic compounds that can be used to mitigate perturbations to the microbiota and provide benefits to host physiology.Subject terms: Microbial ecology, Diseases     

Population structure of Hylobates concolor in Bawanglin Nature Reserve,Hainan, China

The Hainan gibbon continues to survive in Bawanglin Nature Reserve in four social groups totalling 21 individuals. Twelve births have occurred since 1982, and 11 of these individuals survive in 1989. Only three of these 12 births have been females, however. The total female population consists of 6 adult females, two of which are at least 19 years old, and three juvenile females born since 1985. Two of the four social groups have only one adult female each and no juvenile females. All four groups are well protected, but their survival is precarious.