Gut Microbial Divergence between Two Populations of the Hadal Amphipod Hirondellea gigas

The taxonomic composition and functional potential of animal gut microbiota in deep-sea environments remain largely unknown. Here, by performing comparative metagenomics, we suggest that the gut microbial compositions of twoHirondellea gigas populations from the Mariana Trench and the Japan Trench have undergone significant divergence. Through analyses of functional potentials and microbe-microbe correlations, our findings shed light on the contributions of animal gut microbiota to host adaptation to hadal environments.