scholarly journals The potential role of vitamin D supplementation as a gut microbiota modifier in healthy individuals

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Parul Singh ◽  
Arun Rawat ◽  
Mariam Alwakeel ◽  
Elham Sharif ◽  
Souhaila Al Khodor

AbstractVitamin D deficiency affects approximately 80% of individuals in some countries and has been linked with gut dysbiosis and inflammation. While the benefits of vitamin D supplementation on the gut microbiota have been studied in patients with chronic diseases, its effects on the microbiota of otherwise healthy individuals is unclear. Moreover, whether effects on the microbiota can explain some of the marked inter-individual variation in responsiveness to vitamin D supplementation is unknown. Here, we administered vitamin D to 80 otherwise healthy vitamin D-deficient women, measuring serum 25(OH) D levels in blood and characterizing their gut microbiota pre- and post- supplementation using 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Vitamin D supplementation significantly increased gut microbial diversity. Specifically, the Bacteroidetes to Firmicutes ratio increased, along with the abundance of the health-promoting probiotic taxa Akkermansia and Bifidobacterium. Significant variations in the two-dominant genera, Bacteroides and Prevotella, indicated a variation in enterotypes following supplementation. Comparing supplementation responders and non-responders we found more pronounced changes in abundance of major phyla in responders, and a significant decrease in Bacteroides acidifaciens in non-responders. Altogether, our study highlights the positive impact of vitamin D supplementation on the gut microbiota and the potential for the microbial gut signature to affect vitamin D response.

2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Shenhai Gong ◽  
Yinglin Feng ◽  
Yunong Zeng ◽  
Huanrui Zhang ◽  
Meiping Pan ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Gut microbiota has been reported to be disrupted by cisplatin, as well as to modulate chemotherapy toxicity. However, the precise role of intestinal microbiota in the pathogenesis of cisplatin hepatotoxicity remains unknown. Methods We compared the composition and function of gut microbiota between mice treated with and without cisplatin using 16S rRNA gene sequencing and via metabolomic analysis. For understanding the causative relationship between gut dysbiosis and cisplatin hepatotoxicity, antibiotics were administered to deplete gut microbiota and faecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) was performed before cisplatin treatment. Results 16S rRNA gene sequencing and metabolomic analysis showed that cisplatin administration caused gut microbiota dysbiosis in mice. Gut microbiota ablation by antibiotic exposure protected against the hepatotoxicity induced by cisplatin. Interestingly, mice treated with antibiotics dampened the mitogen-activated protein kinase pathway activation and promoted nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 nuclear translocation, resulting in decreased levels of both inflammation and oxidative stress in the liver. FMT also confirmed the role of microbiota in individual susceptibility to cisplatin-induced hepatotoxicity. Conclusions This study elucidated the mechanism by which gut microbiota mediates cisplatin hepatotoxicity through enhanced inflammatory response and oxidative stress. This knowledge may help develop novel therapeutic approaches that involve targeting the composition and metabolites of microbiota.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Panpan Ye ◽  
Xueyou Zhang ◽  
Yufeng Xu ◽  
Jia Xu ◽  
Xiaoxiao Song ◽  
...  

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) has been reported to associate with gut microbiota alterations in murine models and thus “gut-retina-axis” has been proposed. However, the role of gut microbiome and the associated metabolism in DR patients still need to be elucidated. In this study, we collected fecal samples from 45 patients with proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) and 90 matched diabetic patients (1:2 according to age, sex, and duration of diabetes) without DR (NDR) and performed 16S rRNA gene sequencing and untargeted metabolomics. We observed significantly lower bacterial diversity in the PDR group than that in the NDR group. Differential gut bacterial composition was also found, with significant depletion of 22 families (e.g., Coriobacteriaceae, Veillonellaceae, and Streptococcaceae) and enrichment of two families (Burkholderiaceae and Burkholderiales_unclassified) in the PDR group as compared with the NDR group. There were significantly different fecal metabolic features, which were enriched in metabolic pathways such as arachidonic acid and microbial metabolism, between the two groups. Among 36 coabundance metabolite clusters, 11 were positively/negatively contributed to PDR using logistic regression analysis. Fifteen gut microbial families were significantly correlated with the 11 metabolite clusters. Furthermore, a fecal metabolite-based classifier was constructed to distinguish PDR patients from NDR patients accurately. In conclusion, PDR is associated with reduced diversity and altered composition of gut microbiota and specific microbe-metabolite interplay. Our findings help to better understand the disease pathogenesis and provide novel diagnostic and therapeutic targets for PDR.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ke Yao ◽  
Panpan Ye ◽  
Xueyou Zhang ◽  
Yufeng Xu ◽  
Jia Xu ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Diabetic retinopathy (DR) has been reported to associate with gut microbiota alterations in murine models and thus “gut-retina-axis” has been proposed. However, the role of gut microbiome and the associated metabolism in DR patients still need to be elucidated. Results: Fecal samples from 45 patients with proliferative DR (PDR) and 90 matched diabetic patients (1:2 according to age, sex and duration of diabetes) without DR (NDR) were subjected to 16S rRNA gene sequencing and untargeted metabolomics. Significantly lower bacterial diversity was observed in PDR group than that in NDR group. Differential gut bacterial composition was found, with significant depletion of 22 families (e.g., Coriobacteriaceae, Veillonellaceae and Streptococcaceae) and enrichment of 2 families (Burkholderiaceae and Burkholderiales_unclassified) in PDR group as compared to NDR group. There were significantly different fecal metabolic features, which were enriched in metabolic pathways such as arachidonic acid and microbial metabolism, between the two groups. Among 36 co-abundance metabolite clusters, 11 were positively/negatively contributed to PDR using logistic regression analysis. Fifteen gut microbial families were significantly correlated with the 11 metabolite clusters. Furthermore, a fecal metabolites-based classifier was constructed to distinguish PDR patients from NDR patients accurately.Conclusions: PDR is associated with reduced diversity and altered composition of gut microbiota and specific microbe-metabolite interplay. Our findings help to better understand the disease pathogenesis and provide novel diagnostic biomarkers and therapeutic targets for PDR.


2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Qi-Feng Gui ◽  
Hui-Lin Jin ◽  
Feng Zhu ◽  
Hai-Feng Lu ◽  
Qin Zhang ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Several studies have assessed the role of gut microbiota in various cirrhosis etiologies, however, none has done so in the context of Schistosoma japonicum infection in humans. We, therefore, sought to determine whether gut microbiota is associated with S. japonicum infection-induced liver cirrhosis. Methods From December 2017 to November 2019, 24 patients with S. japonicum infection-induced liver cirrhosis, as well as 25 age- and sex-matched controls from the Zhejiang Province, China, were enrolled. Fecal samples were collected and used for 16S rRNA gene sequencing (particularly, the hypervariable V4 region) using the Illumina MiSeq system. Wilcoxon Rank-Sum and PERMANOVA tests were used for analysis. Results Eight hundred and seven operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were detected, of which, 491 were common between the two groups, whereas 123 and 193 were unique to the control and cirrhosis groups, respectively. Observed species, Chao, ACE, Shannon, Simpson, and Good’s coverage indexes, used for alpha diversity analysis, showed values of 173.4 ± 63.8, 197.7 ± 73.0, 196.3 ± 68.9, 2.96 ± 0.57, 0.13 ± 0.09, and 1.00 ± 0.00, respectively, in the control group and 154.0 ± 68.1, 178.6 ± 75.1, 179.9 ± 72.4, 2.68 ± 0.76, 0.19 ± 0.18, and 1.00 ± 0.00, respectively, in the cirrhosis group, with no significant differences observed between the groups. Beta diversity was evaluated by weighted UniFrac distances, with values of 0.40 ± 0.13 and 0.40 ± 0.11 in the control and cirrhosis groups, respectively (P > 0.05). PCA data also confirmed this similarity (P > 0.05). Meanwhile, the relative abundance of species belonging to the Bacilli class was higher in cirrhosis patients [median: 2.74%, interquartile range (IQR): 0.18–7.81%] than healthy individuals (median: 0.15%, IQR: 0.47–0.73%; P < 0.01), and that of Lactobacillales order was also higher in cirrhosis patients (median: 2.73%, IQR: 0.16–7.80%) than in healthy individuals (median: 0.12%, IQR: 0.03–0.70%; P < 0.05). Conclusions Cumulatively, our results suggest that the gut microbiota of S. japonicum infection-induced liver cirrhosis patients is similar to that of healthy individuals, indicating that bacterial taxa cannot be used as non-invasive biomarkers for S. japonicum infection-induced liver cirrhosis.


2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
He Zhou ◽  
Xue Zhao ◽  
Lin Sun ◽  
Yujia Liu ◽  
You Lv ◽  
...  

The gut microbiota has been presumed to have a role in the pathogenesis of type 1 diabetes (T1D). Significant changes in the microbial composition of T1D patients have been reported in several case-control studies. This study is aimed at systematically reviewing the existing literature, which has investigated the alterations of the intestinal microbiome in T1D patients compared with healthy controls (HCs) using 16S ribosomal RNA-targeted sequencing. The databases of MEDLINE, EMBASE, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library were searched until April 2019 for case-control studies comparing the composition of the intestinal microbiome in T1D patients and HCs based on 16S rRNA gene sequencing techniques. The Newcastle-Ottawa Scale was used to assess the methodological quality. Ten articles involving 260 patients with T1D and 276 HCs were included in this systematic review. The quality scores of all included studies were 6–8 points. In summary, a decreased microbiota diversity and a significantly distinct pattern of clustering with regard to β-diversity were observed in T1D patients when compared with HCs. At the phylum level, T1D was characterised by a reduced ratio of Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes in the structure of the gut community, although no consistent conclusion was reached. At the genus or species level, T1D patients had a reduced abundance of Clostridium and Prevotella compared with HCs, whereas Bacteroides and Ruminococcus were found to be more enriched in T1D patients. This systematic review identified that there is a close association between the gut microbiota and development of T1D. Moreover, gut dysbiosis might be involved in the pathogenesis of T1D, although the causative role of gut microbiota remains to be established. Further well-controlled prospective studies are needed to better understand the role of the intestinal microbiome in the pathogenesis of T1D, which may help explore novel microbiota-based strategies to prevent and treat T1D.


Life ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 254
Author(s):  
Ying Wang ◽  
Jianqing Zhu ◽  
Jie Fang ◽  
Li Shen ◽  
Shuojia Ma ◽  
...  

We characterized the gut microbial composition and relative abundance of gut bacteria in the larvae and adults of Pieris canidia by 16S rRNA gene sequencing. The gut microbiota structure was similar across the life stages and sexes. The comparative functional analysis on P. canidia bacterial communities with PICRUSt showed the enrichment of several pathways including those for energy metabolism, immune system, digestive system, xenobiotics biodegradation, transport, cell growth and death. The parameters often used as a proxy of insect fitness (development time, pupation rate, emergence rate, adult survival rate and weight of 5th instars larvae) showed a significant difference between treatment group and untreated group and point to potential fitness advantages with the gut microbiomes in P. canidia. These data provide an overall view of the bacterial community across the life stages and sexes in P. canidia.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Vanessa Palmas ◽  
Silvia Pisanu ◽  
Veronica Madau ◽  
Emanuela Casula ◽  
Andrea Deledda ◽  
...  

AbstractIn the present study, we characterized the distinctive signatures of the gut microbiota (GM) from overweight/obese patients (OB), and normal-weight controls (NW), both of Sardinian origin. Fecal bacterial composition of 46 OB patients (BMI = 36.6 ± 6.0; F/M = 40/6) was analyzed and compared to that of 46 NW subjects (BMI = 21.6 ± 2.1; F/M = 41/5), matched for sex, age and smoking status, by using 16S rRNA gene sequencing on MiSeq Illumina platform. The gut microbial community of OB patients exhibited a significant decrease in the relative abundance of several Bacteroidetes taxa (i.e. Flavobacteriaceae, Porphyromonadaceae, Sphingobacteriaceae, Flavobacterium, Rikenella spp., Pedobacter spp., Parabacteroides spp., Bacteroides spp.) when compared to NW; instead, several Firmicutes taxa were significantly increased in the same subjects (Lachnospiraceae, Gemellaceae, Paenibacillaceae, Streptococcaceae, Thermicanaceae, Gemella, Mitsuokella, Streptococcus, Acidaminococcus spp., Eubacterium spp., Ruminococcus spp., Megamonas spp., Streptococcus, Thermicanus, Megasphaera spp. and Veillonella spp.). Correlation analysis indicated that body fatness and waist circumference negatively correlated with Bacteroidetes taxa, while Firmicutes taxa positively correlated with body fat and negatively with muscle mass and/or physical activity level. Furthermore, the relative abundance of several bacterial taxa belonging to Enterobacteriaceae family, known to exhibit endotoxic activity, was increased in the OB group compared to NW. The results extend our knowledge on the GM profiles in Italian OB, identifying novel taxa linking obesity and intestine.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesco Durazzi ◽  
Claudia Sala ◽  
Gastone Castellani ◽  
Gerardo Manfreda ◽  
Daniel Remondini ◽  
...  

AbstractIn this paper we compared taxonomic results obtained by metataxonomics (16S rRNA gene sequencing) and metagenomics (whole shotgun metagenomic sequencing) to investigate their reliability for bacteria profiling, studying the chicken gut as a model system. The experimental conditions included two compartments of gastrointestinal tracts and two sampling times. We compared the relative abundance distributions obtained with the two sequencing strategies and then tested their capability to distinguish the experimental conditions. The results showed that 16S rRNA gene sequencing detects only part of the gut microbiota community revealed by shotgun sequencing. Specifically, when a sufficient number of reads is available, Shotgun sequencing has more power to identify less abundant taxa than 16S sequencing. Finally, we showed that the less abundant genera detected only by shotgun sequencing are biologically meaningful, being able to discriminate between the experimental conditions as much as the more abundant genera detected by both sequencing strategies.


Nutrients ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 1673
Author(s):  
Inmaculada Acuña ◽  
Tomás Cerdó ◽  
Alicia Ruiz ◽  
Francisco J. Torres-Espínola ◽  
Ana López-Moreno ◽  
...  

BACKGROUND: During early life, dynamic gut colonization and brain development co-occur with potential cross-talk mechanisms affecting behaviour. METHODS: We used 16S rRNA gene sequencing to examine the associations between gut microbiota and neurodevelopmental outcomes assessed by the Bayley Scales of Infant Development III in 71 full-term healthy infants at 18 months of age. We hypothesized that children would differ in gut microbial diversity, enterotypes obtained by Dirichlet multinomial mixture analysis and specific taxa based on their behavioural characteristics. RESULTS: In children dichotomized by behavioural trait performance in above- and below-median groups, weighted Unifrac b-diversity exhibited significant differences in fine motor (FM) activity. Dirichlet multinomial mixture modelling identified two enterotypes strongly associated with FM outcomes. When controlling for maternal pre-gestational BMI and breastfeeding for up to 3 months, the examination of signature taxa in FM groups showed that Turicibacter and Parabacteroides were highly abundant in the below-median FM group, while Collinsella, Coprococcus, Enterococcus, Fusobacterium, Holdemanella, Propionibacterium, Roseburia, Veillonella, an unassigned genus within Veillonellaceae and, interestingly, probiotic Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus were more abundant in the above-median FM group. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest an association between enterotypes and specific genera with FM activity and may represent an opportunity for probiotic interventions relevant to treatment for motor disorders.


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