Odor-based communication between animals is widespread and both the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) and microbiota have been implicated in governing chemical cues relevant for social communication. A proposed sequence of links, defined succinctly in the commentary by Milinski (2021), proceeds as MHC–microbiota–odor signal. Our review (Schubert et al. 2021) aims to summarize the existing evidence for the involvement of microbiota in generating odors that could be used for social communication and the potential involvement of the MHC in governing microbiota. Reiterated in commentaries on our review (Leclaire 2021; Milinski 2021), we emphasize that the existence as well as the underlying mechanism of the proposed pathway have yet to be settled by research, therefore a key component of our review is suggesting ways to thoroughly test the MHC–microbiota–odor signal sequence. We appreciate the unique perspectives of the commentaries of our review, respond to points of contention and consensus, and highlight important points for consideration for future studies.

中文翻译：

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让我们保留替代假设：对 Schubert 等人的评论的回应。

动物之间基于气味的交流很普遍，主要组织相容性复合体 (MHC) 和微生物群都与控制与社会交流相关的化学线索有关。Milinski (2021) 的评论中简洁地定义了一个拟议的链接序列，作为 MHC-微生物群-气味信号进行。我们的评论（Schubert 等人，2021 年）旨在总结微生物群参与产生可用于社会交流的气味的现有证据，以及 MHC 可能参与管理微生物群。在对我们的评论（Leclaire 2021；Milinski 2021）的评论中重申，我们强调存在以及潜在的机制所提出的途径的一部分尚未通过研究解决，因此我们审查的一个关键组成部分是提出彻底测试 MHC-微生物群-气味信号序列的方法。我们欣赏评论评论的独特视角，回应争论点和共识，并强调重要的观点以供未来研究考虑。