Research Jonas Torfs

Abstract

The human vaginal microbiome is often dominated by Lactobacillus, which protects the female host against invading pathogens by creating an acidic environment through the production of lactic acid. Interestingly, this phenotype seems to be unique to the human species: no other primate species shows Lactobacillus dominance in the vaginal microbiome, raising questions about the evolution of this microbial ecosystem within the primate clade. A prerequisite to solve this evolutionary puzzle is an understanding of the ecological processes (e.g. dispersal, local selection) shaping the primate vaginal microbiome but such knowledge is currently lacking. Here, I will investigate the vaginal microbiome of the bonobo (Pan paniscus), a species in which females show frequent sociosexual contact with other females. By performing shotgun metagenomic sequencing of vaginal swab samples and linking results to (behavioral) data in a multi-zoo bonobo cohort, I will investigate the independent effects of horizontal, vertical, and within-individual (gut-vagina) bacterial transmission on the vaginal microbiome. Moreover, I will compare human vaginal microbiome composition with that of bonobos and examine which local selection mechanisms are responsible for creating observed differences using in-vitro assays. Together, these analyses will yield new insights into the determinants, and ultimately the evolution, of this understudied microbial ecosystem.

Researcher(s)

• Promoter: Lebeer Sarah
• Co-promoter: Staes Nicky
• Co-promoter: Wittouck Stijn
• Fellow: Torfs Jonas

Research team(s)

• Laboratory of Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology (LAMB)

Project type(s)

• Research Project

Abstract

It has been known for a relatively long time that the microbes living in our gut play an important role in regulating our physical and mental health. However, recent literature emphasizes the potentially major role of the gut microbiome in the regulation of brain function and behavior. Gut microbes play an important role in the development and regulation of behavior and cognition, giving rise to a connection between the brain and the gut, also known as the gut-brain axis. Conversely, the social behavior of the host itself will directly influence the composition of the gut microbiome, indicating the axis is bidirectional. To date, very little is known about the gut-brain axis in animals, especially in non-human primates. Great apes are of particular interest, since they form an excellent study system to investigate the evolution of the gut-brain axis in humans because of their high evolutionary relatedness. Bonobos in particular form an interesting model-species due to their high overlap in socio-cognitive skills with humans, but surprisingly, their gut microbiome remains largely unstudied. Therefore, the aim of this study is to characterize the bonobo gut microbiome and to investigate which factors drive interindividual variation in gut microbiome composition and diversity, including behavior. Moreover, I will perform behavioral observations combined with experimental microbiome manipulations to closely examine the impact and dependence of the microbiome on bonobo sociality.

Researcher(s)

• Promoter: Eens Marcel
• Co-promoter: Staes Nicky
• Fellow: Torfs Jonas

Research team(s)

• Behavioural Ecology & Ecophysiology

Project type(s)

• Research Project