The Role of Biogeography in Shaping Intestinal Flora and Influence on Fatty Acid Composition in Red Swamp Crayfish (Procambarus clarkii)

Abstract

Intestinal microbiota plays an important role in promoting digestion, metabolism, and immunity. Intestinal microbiota and fatty acids are important indicators to evaluate the health and nutritional composition of Procambarus clarkii. They have been shown to be strongly influence by environmental and genetic factors. However, it is not clear whether environmental factors have a greater impact on the intestinal microbiota and fatty acid composition of crayfish. The link between the intestinal microbial communities and fatty acid (FA) compositions of red swamp crayfish from different geographical has not yet been studied. Thus, the current paper focuses on the influence of different environments on the fatty acids in muscles of crayfish and the possible existence between gut microbiota and fatty acids. Therefore, in this study, we compared the fatty acid compositions and intestinal microbiota of five crayfish populations from different geographical locations. The results were further analyzed to determine whether there is a relationship between geographical location, fatty acid compositions and intestinal microbiota. The gut microbial communities of the crayfish populations were characterized using 16S rRNA high-throughput gene sequencing. The results showed that there were significant differences in FA compositions of crayfish populations from different geographical locations. A similar trend was observed in the gut microbiome, which also varied significantly according to geographic location. Interestingly, the analysis revealed that there was a relationship between fatty acid compositions and intestinal microbes, revealed by alpha diversity analysis and cluster analysis. However, further studies of the interactions between the P. clarkii gut microbiota and biochemical composition are needed, which will ultimately reveal the complexity of microbial ecosystems with potential applications in aquaculture and species conservation.

Keywords: Fatty acid; Geographic location；Environment; Gut bacterial community; Procambarus clarkii.