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How can poop inform how we test for and treat #chlamydia in wild #koalas? This week’s #wildhealthhighlight features work by @USCDetectionDog on chlamydia detection and @PhDKD + @phylogenomics on the 
https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🐨" title="Koala" aria-label="Emoji: Koala"> #microbiome – papers linked in thread (1/N)
#Chlamydia is a sexually transmitted infection contributing to the decline of some #koala populations. Young https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🐨" title="Koala" aria-label="Emoji: Koala"> can also become infected through feeding on an infected mother’s “pap” which is a nutrient-rich feces. Omnomnom?(2/N)
While some studies estimate that ~ 40% of https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🐨" title="Koala" aria-label="Emoji: Koala"> in some areas are infected with #chlamydia, estimates are difficult due to needing to capture https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🐨" title="Koala" aria-label="Emoji: Koala"> + because sampling can be biased towards sick animals. Is there an alternative? (3/N)
Work by @USCDetectionDog in @molecology found that #koala poop can be tested for #chlamydia using #molecular methods + can be detected by trained detection #dogs! (Although https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🐕" title="Dog" aria-label="Emoji: Dog"> detection may change w/ time as poop is exposed to the environment) (4/N) https://bit.ly/2XIW7mu ">https://bit.ly/2XIW7mu&q...
So surveying https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🐨" title="Koala" aria-label="Emoji: Koala">poop can be a non-invasive way to estimate the # of infected https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🐨" title="Koala" aria-label="Emoji: Koala">, but how can we treat them? As #chlamydia is caused by a #bacterium, can we just dose these critters up with #antibiotics + be on our way? *brief internal scream because antibiotic resistance* (5/N)
While sick #koalas are treated with #antibiotics, they sometimes suffer adverse effects from treatment which can be fatal. But why? It turns out, the answer might also be in their poop (6/N)
@PhDKD + @phylogenomics looked at the difference in the #microbiome of #koalas that survived vs those that didn’t after treatment + found that https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🐨" title="Koala" aria-label="Emoji: Koala"> that died had significantly lower relative abundance of the bacterium Lonepinella koalarum (7/N) @thePeerJ https://bit.ly/35z4eEZ ">https://bit.ly/35z4eEZ&q...
Lonepinella koalarum breaks down tannins (toxic to many animals) in the eucalyptus plants eaten by #koalas. Without these bacteria, https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🐨" title="Koala" aria-label="Emoji: Koala"> may be unable to detoxify their food + survive, highlighting the importance of understanding how these gut microbes contribute to https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🐨" title="Koala" aria-label="Emoji: Koala"> health (8/N)
While a combination of #chlamydia and #wildfires may seem dire, there’s hope - researchers recently reported in @nature that #koalas on Kangaroo Island are #chlamydia-free and could help re-populate areas where https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="🐨" title="Koala" aria-label="Emoji: Koala"> are in decline if necessary (9/N) https://go.nature.com/2QPd4ug ">https://go.nature.com/2QPd4ug&q...
Are there other studies on #chlamydia in #koalas that you find fascinating? Share in this thread or share w/ #wildhealthhighlight! (10/N)
