Nasopharyngeal Bacterial–Fungal Dysbiosis in Respiratory-Diseased Endangered Forest Musk Deer (Moschus berezovskii)

BACKGROUND: ), particularly in the context of disease. METHODS: = 6) individuals. RESULTS: ) as biomarkers for the diseased group. PICRUSt2 prediction indicated enrichment of pathways related to carotenoid biosynthesis and sphingolipid metabolism in the diseased state, while FUNGuild analysis suggested a higher abundance of animal/plant pathogen-related fungi. CONCLUSIONS: ), alongside distinct functional shifts in the microbiome. These findings provide the first integrated bacterial-fungal profile of the nasopharyngeal microbiome in this endangered species, and highlight potential microbial biomarkers associated with respiratory disease.