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Bacteria to Brains in Backyard Coyotes

This interdisciplinary pedagogical case study focuses on differences between rural and urban coyotes at the levels of organismal and community ecology, including how their gut microbiomes could affect their behaviour. The health and fitness of rural and urban coyote populations vary dramatically with the latter being poor as a result of their consumption of carbohydrate-rich anthropogenic food, compared to a more natural protein-rich diet. This difference is associated with altered gut microbiome composition. The case explores how altered microbiomes can influence behavior changes through the gut-brain axis. Cross talk between the brain and gut microbiome involves multiple physiological systems including the immune, endocrine, and nervous systems. This case showcases the interdisciplinary nature of science by having students explore the connection between these macro and micro-level systems. It is based on a manuscript by Sugden et al. (2020) supporting the existence of distinct gut microbiomes in rural and urban coyotes. Interdisciplinary connection - Immunology+Microbiology+Ecology+Animal Behavior

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