Advanced Level
Researchers have discovered how pandas are able to gain weight even though they only eat bamboo.
It turns out the animals' gut bacteria changes in the season when nutritious bamboo shoots become available.
This helps the bears store more fat and could compensate for the lack of nutrients in seasons when there are only bamboo leaves to chew on, a study by the Institute of Zoology at the Chinese Academy of Sciences suggests.
Guangping Huang, one of the study's authors, said: "This is the first time we established a causal relationship between a panda's gut microbiota and its phenotype.
Elementary Level
Researchers have understood how pandas can gain weight even though they only eat bamboo. Apparently the bacteria in the animal’s stomach changes when bamboo shoots are available.
A study done by the Institute of Zoology at the Chinese Academy of Sciences concluded that this change in bacteria helps the bears keep more fat in their body and could make up for the seasons when there are only bamboo leaves to eat.
One of the authors of the study named Guangping Huang, said: “this is the first time we found a connection between a panda’s bacteria in the stomach and its physical features.”
