Danielle Farinella

Gut microbiome analysis revealed an increase in Helicobacter, a common commensal mucosal microbe of rhesus macaques, during peak infection. Joint ordination comparing malaria data to healthy macaque data show that gut microbiome timepoints from peak malaria infection cluster with healthy mucosal samples –but not healthy luminal- indicating a possible “sloughing off” effect, whereby malaria damages the endothelium, causing mucosal tissue and its associated microbes to be discarded through the feces. Functional analysis suggests a depletion in carbohydrate metabolism. Overall, these changes suggest a reduction in gut microbiome health and function during peak malaria infection.