Abstract: Food restriction (FR) is a key environmental stress influencing animal adaptive strategies, and its interaction mechanisms with gut microbiota have become a research hotspot in recent years. The gut microbiota, the host’s‘second genome’, is essential for assisting small mammals in adjusting to dietary limitations. The advantages benefits of using small mammals as research models for gut microbiome studies are explored in this paper. Subsequently, we examine the differential effects of various FR regimens on host gut microbiomes, including complete fasting, partial fasting, and nutritional restriction. We emphasize how FR mediates host physiological adaptation by reshaping microbial community structure, altering metabolic functions, and influencing microbe-host interactions. This paper integrates the multi-scale physiological and ecological effects of FR mediated by gut microbiota. At the individual level, it regulates energy balance, immune homeostasis, and cognitive behavior; and at the population level, it influences reproductive development and population dynamics. Further exploration should concentrate on understanding the molecular underpinnings of microbiome plasticity, clarifying the implications of intergenerational transmission, and expanding the application of these discoveries in wildlife management and conservation. The‘FR-gut microbiota-host phenotype-population dynamics’ framework established in this paper provides a new perspective for deepening our understanding of the physiological basis of animal adaptation to the environment.

Key words: Small mammals, Food restriction, Gut microbiota, Interaction, Adaptation

摘要： 食物限制是影响动物适应性策略的关键环境压力，其与肠道微生物的互作机制已成为近年来的研究热点。作为宿主的“第二基因组”，肠道菌群在帮助小型哺乳动物应对食物限制中扮演着核心角色。本综述首先系统分析了小型哺乳动物作为肠道微生物研究模型的独特优势，进而详细梳理了完全禁食、部分禁食与营养限制等不同食物限制类型对宿主肠道菌群的差异化影响，最后重点阐释了食物限制通过重塑微生物群落结构、改变其代谢功能并影响微生物-宿主互作来介导宿主生理适应的关键机制。本文整合阐述了食物限制通过肠道微生物产生的跨尺度生理生态效应：在个体层面，其调控能量平衡、免疫稳态与认知行为；在种群层面，则影响生殖发育与种群动态。展望未来，研究应聚焦于解析微生物组可塑性的分子基础，厘清其代际传递效应，并推动相关成果在野生动物保护与管理中的应用。本文构建的食物限制-肠道微生物-宿主表型-种群动态框架，为深入理解动物对环境适应的生理基础提供了新视角。

关键词: 小型哺乳动物, 食物限制, 肠道微生物, 互作, 适应