Abstract

The bacterial population of the primate vaginal canal is an infant primate's first exposure to the microbial population inhabiting the outside world. Yet, little is known about this population and the effect it might have on the development and survival of the infant primate. As a first step toward characterizing the vaginal microbiota of a nonhuman primate, we used denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis to evaluate variations in the vaginal microbiota of a group of 35 baboons (Papio hamadryas), which were housed in a facility where they shared the same diet and the same environmental conditions. We found that, despite the uniform environment, there were appreciable differences in the composition of the microbiota from one individual to another. Our results also indicate that a simple swab test is sufficient for sampling the vaginal microbiota in the field, a finding that should help make more detailed characterization of the microbiota of wild primates feasible in the future.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)467-474
Number of pages8
JournalAmerican journal of primatology
Volume72
Issue number6
DOIs
StatePublished - Jun 2010

Keywords

  • Interindividual variation
  • Microbiota of baboon
  • Nonhuman primates

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
  • Animal Science and Zoology

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