Explore the vast range of titles available.

Upland buzzard (Buteo hemilasius), Saker falcon (Falco cherrug), and Himalayan vulture (Gyps himalayensis) are three common large raptors in the Sanjiangyuan National Park (SNP), China's first national park. Among them, Upland buzzard and Saker falcon play a significant role in controlling plateau rodent populations and reducing the transmission of pathogens carried by rodents. The Himalayan vulture can provide services for the redistribution and recycling of nutrients in the ecosystem, and play an irreplaceable role in the celestial burial culture of Tibetans in China. Exploring their habitat suitability is important for the protection of the three raptors. Our research was based on the current distribution of Upland buzzard, Saker falcon, and Himalayan vulture that we had extensively surveyed in the Sanjiangyuan National Park from 2016 to 2017. Combined with the correlation analysis of environmental variables, we utilized maximum entropy model (MaxEnt) to evaluate and compare the habitat suitability of the three species in the Sanjiangyuan National Park. Elevation, climate, and human disturbance factors, which had direct or indirect effects on species survival and reproduction, were all included in the model. Among them, elevation was the most important environmental variables affecting the suitability of habitats of three species. Temperature‐related factor was another important predictor. The high (>60%) suitable habitat areas for Upland buzzard, Saker falcon, and Himalayan vulture were 73,017.63, 40,732.78, and 61,654.33 km2, respectively, accounted for 59.32%, 33.09%, and 50.08% of the Sanjiangyuan National Park and their total suitable area (i.e., the sum area of high and moderate habitats) reached 96.07%, 60.59%, and 93.70%, respectively. Besides, the three species have overlapping areas for the suitable habitats, which means that overlapping areas should be highly valued and protected. Therefore, understanding the distribution of suitable habitats of the three raptors can provide useful information and reasonable reference for us to put forward suggestions for their protection and regional management. This study used the maxent model to assess the habitat suitability of Upland buzzard, Saker falcon, and Himalayan vulture in Sanjiangyuan National Park, China (China's first national park). This research might provide a scientific basis for the conservation and management of species in Sanjiangyuan National Park, while raptors as umbrella species can benefit other species when they are protected and concerned.

In endangered species conservation, fecal samples are a vital non-invasive tool for gut microbiota analysis. Yet, the influence of external exposure time on microbial composition and function remains unclear, constraining data accuracy and reliability. To address this, we investigated the time-gradient effect in the globally endangered forest musk deer ( Moschus berezovskii ). Using non-invasive sampling under standardized captive conditions, fecal samples were collected at six storage times: (0, 1, 2, 4, 6, 8 days). Gut microbiota composition, diversity, enterotypes, and functional differences were assessed through 16S rRNA gene sequencing on the Illumina MiSeq platform. In total, 147,013 valid ASVs (amplicon sequence variants) were obtained showing significant shifts in microbial composition with storage time. Dominant phyla included Firmicutes , Bacteroidetes , Proteobacteria , and Actinobacteria . Increasing storage time led to declining α-diversity, reduced community stability, and more unique genera. PCoA (principal coordinates analysis) and NMDS (non-metric multidimensional scaling) indicated progressive separation of experimental groups from control groups, with Anosim and Adonis confirming progressive separation with storage time. Structurally, Firmicutes decreased while Proteobacteria , specifically the Acinetobacter genus, increased with storage time. Community assembly shifted from deterministic to stochastic processes, reflecting stronger environmental disturbance effects. These results demonstrate that the gut microbiota composition, diversity, and ecological functions in forest musk deer feces are highly sensitive to storage time. Thus, preservation duration must be strictly controlled as a critical variable in microbiome studies. This work establishes methodological standards for non-invasive fecal metagenomics in endangered species, providing theoretical insights and practical guidance for improving scientific rigor in conservation-related microbiome research. Key points Fecal microbiota diversity and stability decline significantly with longer storage. Firmicutes decrease while Proteobacteria, especially Acinetobacter, increase over time. Storage duration strongly impacts microbiome data, requiring strict sampling control. Graphical abstract

Background Diverse gut microbiota in animals significantly influences host physiology, ecological adaptation, and evolution. However, the specific functional roles of gut microbiota in facilitating host adaptation, as well as the coevolutionary dynamics between microbiota and their hosts, remain largely understudied. Results A total of 41,847 metagenome-assembled genomes and 3193 high-quality species-level genome bins were generated, establishing a comprehensive gut microbiome catalog for cervids in this study. Phylogenetic analysis revealed a coevolutionary relationship between cervids and their gut microbiota. Comparative metagenomic analyses further indicated that the gut microbiota of plateau cervids have undergone genome-level adaptations related to energy metabolism. At the genus level, species-level genome bins from the genera Alistipes and Faecousia in plateau cervids exhibit enhanced energy metabolism capabilities. Structural variations analysis revealed that the insertion and duplications structural variations in the gut microbiota of plateau cervids were significantly enriched in energy metabolism pathways. In contrast, the deletions and contractions in structural variations were predominantly enriched with metabolic pathways involved in the biosynthesis of diverse biochemical molecules. Conclusions Our study provides a comprehensive gut microbiome catalog of the cervid gut microbiota, revealing the coevolutionary relationship between cervid gut microbiota and hosts. These findings highlight the adaptive genomic evolution of the gut microbiota in contributing to the plateau adaptability of cervids and offer new insights into the mechanisms by which the gut microbiota help hosts adapt to extreme environments.

Background Gastrointestinal microbiota play an important role in animal host immunity, nutrient metabolism, and energy acquisition, and have therefore drawn increasing attentions. This study compared the diversity of the gut microbiota of both wild and captive bharals, which is an ungulate herbivore of caprid from the Qinghai-Tibet plateau. Results The sequencing of the V4-V5 region of the 16S rRNA gene via high-throughput sequencing technology showed that the dominant bacterial phyla are Firmicutes and Bacteroides both in wild and captive bharals. However, their abundance differed significantly between groups. Firmicutes were significantly higher in wild bharals, while Bacteroides were significantly higher in captive bharals. Different diets are likely a key influencing factor in the diversity and abundance of gut microbiota in bharals. Conclusions Changes in diets affect the diversity of gut microbiota and the relative abundance of pathogenic bacteria, increasing the risk of diseases outbreak in captive bharals. The results of this study suggest that the structure and function of the gut microbiota should be regulated via dietary intervention, accurate provision of an individualized diet, and optimization of the functional network of gut microbiota and its interaction with the host. This will improve the ex situ protection of wild animals.

To explore the effects of sequential enteral nutrition support in elderly patients with severe ischemic stroke after thrombectomy. From January 2022 to January 2024, 115 elderly patients with severe ischemic stroke who underwent thrombectomy were selected and divided into a control group (  = 57) and an intervention group (  = 58). The control group received routine enteral nutrition support, while the intervention group received sequential enteral nutrition support. The nutritional status, immune function, degree of neurological impairment, prognosis, daily living ability, gastrointestinal dysfunction, and incidence of complications were compared between the two groups. Compared with the control group, the intervention group had higher levels of albumin (ALB), total protein (TP), prealbumin (PA), and hemoglobin (Hb) on the 14th day after intervention (  < 0.05), higher levels of immunoglobulin A (IgA), immunoglobulin M (IgM), and immunoglobulin G (IgG) on the 14th day after intervention (  < 0.05), lower NIHSS score after 14 days of intervention, higher Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score, higher Barthel Index (BI) at discharge (  < 0.01), lower gastrointestinal dysfunction score on the 14th day after intervention (  < 0.05), and lower complication rate (  < 0.05). Sequential enteral nutrition support can attenuate the deterioration of intestinal adaptability under pathological conditions, promote the absorption of nutrients, and slow the decline of nutritional status in elderly patients with severe ischemic stroke after thrombectomy in the short term. It also shows early functional benefits, such as mitigating the worsening of the GCS and NIHSS scores at 14 days and the BI at discharge, and reducing the occurrence of short-term complications. Additionally, it appears to decelerate the decline of cellular and humoral immune parameters. These short-term physiological and early functional modifications create favorable conditions for the initial treatment and early rehabilitation of the diseases.

Due to persistent poaching and habitat fragmentation, wild forest musk deer (Moschus berezovskii) in China have sharply declined; although captive breeding helps, frequent gut diseases limit further expansion. This study used high-throughput 16S rRNA sequencing to analyze the effects of age, season variation, and compound probiotics on the gut microbiota of captive individuals. The results demonstrated that compound probiotics exerted a significantly greater influence on gut microbial composition, α-diversity, and functional variation compared to the effects of age or seasonal factors. β-diversity analysis confirmed greater differences between probiotic-treated and control groups than among age or seasonal groups. Microbial community assembly was mainly driven by deterministic processes, with stochastic processes also playing a role in winter. Compound probiotics markedly reshaped dominant bacterial taxa at both phylum and genus levels, with Acinetobacter identified as a key biomarker. They also significantly modulated metabolic and phenotypic traits, decreasing functions related to Gram-positive and aerobic bacteria while enhancing those linked to Gram-negative characteristics. Environmental correlation analysis further demonstrated that compound probiotics exerted a stronger influence than both age and seasonal factors. The findings underscore the value of dietary and probiotic strategies for enhancing gut health and resilience in endangered forest musk deer.

Sanjiangyuan National Park (SNP), the first national park in China, is one of the most important biodiversity conservation areas in the Sanjiangyuan National Nature Reserve (SNNR) and even the world. The threatened ungulates play an irreplaceable role in maintaining the ecosystem diversity and stability in SNNR. Here, based on 1434 occurrence records of six ungulates, the maximum entropy model, with two different strategies, was utilized to determine the priority reserves. The results indicated that the priority reserves in SNNR was mainly located in and around SNP, which were mainly distributed in the middle east, middle west, and southwest of SNNR. Six ungulates shared preference for altitude ranging 4000–5000 m, the average annual temperature below −3.0°C, and average annual precipitation ranging 200–400 mm on meadow, steppe, and unused land. The proportion of high and medium suitable areas for ungulates in SNP was higher than that in SNNR. As the SNP is not contiguously spaced in space, and some core wildlife habitats are not included, it is suggested to optimize the functional areas and adjust the boundary range on the basis of the pilot scope of SNP, so as to enhance the integrity and connectivity of each functional area. Two strategies were used to analyze the overlap of suitable habitats.Core suitable areas of herbivores were similar in SNP and SNNR based on both strategies.SNP is the most suitable distribution area for six herbivores in SNNR.

Trillions of microbes colonize the ungulate gastrointestinal tract, playing a pivotal role in enhancing host nutrient utilization by breaking down cellulose and hemicellulose present in plants. Here, through large-scale metagenomic assembly, we established a catalog of 131,416 metagenome-assembled genomes (MAGs) and 11,175 high-quality species-level genome bins (SGBs) from 17 species of ungulates in China. Our study revealed the convergent evolution of high relative abundances of carbohydrate-active enzymes (CAZymes) in the gut microbiomes of plateau-dwelling ungulates. Notably, two significant factors contribute to this phenotype: structural variations in their gut microbiome genomes, which contain more CAZymes, and the presence of novel gut microbiota species, particularly those in the genus Cryptobacteroides, which are undergoing independent rapid evolution and speciation and have higher gene densities of CAZymes. Furthermore, these enrichment CAZymes in the gut microbiomes are highly enrichment in known metabolic pathways for short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) production. Our findings not only provide a valuable genomic resource for understanding the gut microbiomes of ungulates but also offer fresh insights into the interaction between gut microbiomes and their hosts, as well as the co-adaptation of hosts and their gut microbiomes to their environments.

The gut microbiota plays a critical role in plant digestion, nutrient absorption, and ecological adaptation in herbivores. However, how gut microbiota and diet jointly influence ecological niche differentiation in sympatric species remains unclear. Here, we use metagenomic sequencing and plant trnL (UAA) fragment sequencing to examine the gut microbiota and dietary composition of sympatric Tibetan argali ( Ovis ammon hodgsoni ) and blue sheep ( Pseudois nayaur ) in the Kunlun Mountains of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Despite inhabiting similar environments, the two species harbor distinct microbial compositions and functional profiles. Interestingly, higher dietary diversity does not correspond to higher microbial diversity. Tibetan argali, despite having a simpler diet, possesses a more diverse and flexible gut microbiome. In contrast, blue sheep show broader dietary preferences and stronger microbial metabolic adaptation to glycan biosynthesis and metabolism. These findings reveal significant associations between gut microbiota composition, function, and diet, supporting a microbial contribution to trophic niche differentiation. Our results highlight distinct microbial-dietary strategies in sympatric herbivores and underscore the role of the gut microbiome in ecological adaptation and species coexistence. Gut microbiome and diet jointly reveal ecological niche differentiation between Tibetan argali and blue sheep, providing new insights into sympatric adaptation on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.

ABSTRACT Amidst the global biodiversity crisis, conserving endangered species like musk deer (Moschus spp.) is crucial. China holds the highest musk deer diversity worldwide, with abundant populations, wide distribution, and significant musk production. We reviewed the morphology, population trends, distribution, conservation status, captive breeding, and related challenges of musk deer to inform targeted conservation strategies. Currently, wild musk deer populations are primarily distributed in western, central, and northeastern regions of China. Over the past seven decades, illegal hunting and habitat fragmentation have caused severe population declines, reducing most populations by over 97% since the 1950s. To alleviate pressure on wild populations and promote sustainable resource use, China initiated captive breeding of musk deer in 1958, resulting in a 5.6‐fold increase in captive musk deer from the 1990s to the 2020s. However, challenges like serious diseases hinder further expansion of artificial musk production. Given the limitations of both in situ and ex situ conservation, it is advised to establish or optimize natural reserves in musk deer habitat. Strengthening law enforcement, population monitoring, ecological research, captive breeding, reintroduction, and public awareness is essential for global musk deer conservation.