ArticlePloS one2025
Environment and weight class linked to skin microbiome structure of juvenile Eastern hellbenders (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis alleganiensis) in human care.
Article in PloS one, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Amphibian skin is integral to promoting normal physiological processes in the body and promotes both innate and adaptive immunity against pathogens. The amphibian skin microbiota is comprised of a complex assemblage of microbes and is shaped by internal host characteristics and external influences. Skin disease is a significant source of morbidity and mortality in amphibians, and increasing research has shown that the amphibian skin microbiota is an important component in host health. The Eastern hellbender (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis alleganiensis) is a giant salamander declining in many parts of its range, and captive-rearing programs are important to hellbender recovery efforts. Survival rates of juvenile hellbenders in captive-rearing programs are highly variable, and mortality rates are overall poorly understood. Deceased juvenile hellbenders often present with low body condition and skin abnormalities. To investigate potential links between the skin microbiota and body condition, we collected skin swab samples from 116 juvenile hellbenders and water samples from two holding tanks in a captive-rearing program. We used 16s rRNA gene sequencing to characterize the skin and water microbiota and observed significant differences in the skin microbiota by weight class and tank. The skin microbiota of hellbenders that were housed in tanks in close proximity were generally more similar than those housed physically distant. A single taxa, Parcubacteria, was differentially abundant by weight class only and observed in higher abundance in low weight hellbenders. These results suggest a specific association between this taxa and Low weight hellbenders. Additional research is needed to investigate how husbandry factors and potential pathogenic organisms, such as Parcubacteria, impact the skin microbiota of hellbenders and ultimately morbidity and mortality in the species.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.