Comparison of gut microflora of donkeys in high and low altitude areas

Donkeys’ gut microbe is critical for their health and adaptation to the environment. Little research has been conducted on the donkey gut microbiome compared with other domestic animals. The Tibetan Plateau is an extreme environment. In this study, 6 Qinghai donkeys (QH) from the Tibetan Plateau and 6 Dezhou donkeys (DZ) were investigated, and the contents of 4 parts—stomach, small intestine, cecum, and rectum—were collected. 16S rRNA sequencing and metagenomic sequencing were used to analyze the composition and diversity of gut microbial communities in donkeys. The results showed that the flora diversity and richness of the hindgut were significantly higher than those of the foregut ( p