Abstract: The gastrointestinal (GI) microbiota of mammals is characterized by its high population density, wide diversity and complexity of interactions. The microbiota have a profound influence on nutritional, physiological and immunological processes in the host animal. Here, a summary of current molecular ecological approaches for studying the GI microbiota and discusses future directions was provided.

Key words: gastrointestinal microbiota; microbial ecology; SSU rRNA/rDNA; molecular techniques