Physical principles of the evolution and adaptation of microbial communities

肠道微生物组的变化与哺乳动物的多种特征有关，从行为和神经典型特征到免疫力，抗病性和代谢。还有越来越多的证据表明，至少有一些机制是因果关系，肠道微生物组的变异或变异变化导致健康状况不佳。肠道微生物组的变化在很大程度上受环境因素的影响，特别是社会环境和饮食。食物来源、营养成分和营养质量的变化，特别是在生命早期，可能在鸟类中发挥更大的作用，因为从蛋中孵化出来的小鸡没有母亲的微生物组。因此，我们可以预测的变化，在肠道微生物组的鸟类后代出生期间的时间波动的猎物availability.Recently，在季节性食物供应的变化已经变得更加明显的生物体，经历了自己和猎物物候期之间的不匹配。气候变化可导致物候期提前，特别是在温带地区。然而，这可能意味着动物需要依赖不同的食物来源，如果猎物的物候学不遵循相同的进展，这可能导致潜在的更多样化的食物，从而导致不同的肠道微生物组。由于早期生活肠道微生物组可能决定成年肠道微生物组，繁殖时间的不匹配可能通过肠道微生物组的变化及其后果产生持久的后果。然而，对微生物组在鸟类中的作用知之甚少。虽然我们已经证明早期生活环境起着重要作用，而遗传相关性的作用相对较小，但对野生种群的研究仍然很少。在本项目中，我们将测试以下假设：（a）早期生活饮食的差异影响早期生活和成年鸟类微生物组，（B）鸟类微生物组将随繁殖时间而变化，并且（c）这可能导致长期的健身后果。我们将在野生种群和鸟类中使用实验方法来测试这一点。

Variation in the gut microbiome is associated with multiple traits in mammals, ranging from behavioural and neurotypical traits to immunity, disease resistance and metabolism. There is also growing evidence that at least some mechanisms are causal, with poor health conditions caused by variation, or changes in the variation, of the gut microbiome. Gutmicrobiome variation is largely shaped by environmental factors, in particular social environment, and diet. Variation in food source, nutrient composition and nutrient quality, particularly in early life are likely to play a larger role in birds, where chicks hatching from eggs are not primed with the microbiome of their mother. Thus, we can predict variation inthe gut microbiome of avian offspring born during periods of temporal fluctuation in prey availability.Recently, changes in seasonal food availability have become more pronounced for organisms that experience a mismatch between own and prey phenology. Climate change can lead to advancing phenologies, in particular in temperate regions. However, this can mean animals need to rely on different food sources if phenology of prey does not follow the same advance, which might lead to potentially more diverse food items, and thus different gut microbiomes. As the early life gut microbiome likely determines the adult gut microbiome, a mismatch in the timing of breeding can have lasting consequences through variation in the gut microbiome, and consequences thereof.However, not much is known about the role of the microbiome in birds. While we have shown that the early life environment plays an important role contrasting a relatively small role of genetic relatedness, studies on wild population remain rare.In this project we will test the hypotheses that (a) differences in early life diet affect early life, and adult avian microbiome, that (b) the avian microbiome will vary with timing of breeding, and that (c) this can lead to long-lasting fitness consequences. We will test this using an experimental approach in a wild population and in aviary birds.