HIV-1 Animal Microbiome Model
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Abstract
The microbiome is the system of microorganisms that live in and on the body of an animal. It produces enzymes that degrade or modify the chemical structure of drugs; likewise, it also produces microbial metabolites that compete with the molecules. Due to the microbiome’s affect on drug metabolism and the host, any correlations discovered between the gut microbiome during HIV-1 infection and that of commonly-utilized rodent models may provide useful avenues for continued research. In this project fecal samples from rats, mice, hamsters, bats, and snakes were collected. The DNA found in the fecal samples was then extracted and purified. It was sent to Novogene to be sequenced using the ion torrent sequencing technique and analyzed using alpha, beta, and variance statistics. The data from the microbiome of the rodents was compared to previous research on the microbiome of humans infected with HIV-1 to find out which would be the most comparable model. The deer mice were shown to have the most diversity of all the different species. In contrast the mice had the least diverse microbiome. All species shared 975 different OTUs. The deer mice had 215 OTUs that were not found in the other two species showing that they had the greatest beta diversity.
Acknowledgments
Frontiers of Science Institute, and especially Lori Ball, made this research possible. She organized events and our research time. This allowed us to complete this research.
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UNC made this research possible by hosting FSI.
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The Adolph Coors foundation paid for all the research, including the room and board.
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