scholarly journals Gut Microbiome and Social Determinants of Health (SDOH)

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 01-05
Author(s):  
Suneeta Kumari

With technological advancements in the medical field, new discoveries have been unfolded about the human microbiota. A tremendous amount of work has been studied within the last two decades. Some of the human microbiota sites include nonsterile areas such as mouth, skin, gut, nose, and vagina. Additionally, there are bacterial cells in areas that were considered sterile such as lungs and placenta before delivery. Out of all the sites, the gut houses the most with an amount of 100 trillion bacteria (Guinane, 2013). Environmental implications have been known to impact these new areas of medicine. There has been a growing interest by the social epidemiologists on how health inequalities impact the role of human gut microbiota.

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 1017
Author(s):  
Rui Li ◽  
Zhengsheng Mao ◽  
Xujun Ye ◽  
Tao Zuo

The important role of human gut microbiota in liver diseases has long been recognized as dysbiosis and the translocation of certain microbes from the gut to liver. With the development of high-throughput DNA sequencing, the complexity and integrity of the gut microbiome in the whole spectrum of liver diseases is emerging. Specific patterns of gut microbiota have been identified in liver diseases with different causes, including alcoholic, non-alcoholic, and virus induced liver diseases, or even at different stages, ranging from steatohepatitis, fibrosis, cirrhosis, to hepatocellular carcinoma. At the same time, the mechanism of how microbiota contributes to liver diseases goes beyond the traditional function of the gut–liver axis which could lead to liver injury and inflammation. With the application of proteomics, metabolomics, and modern molecular technologies, more microbial metabolites and the complicated interaction of microbiota with host immunity come into our understanding in the liver pathogenesis. Germ-free animal models serve as a workhorse to test the function of microbiota and their derivatives in liver disease models. Here, we review the current evidence on the relationship between gut microbiota and liver diseases, and the mechanisms underlying this phenotype. In addition to original liver diseases, gut microbiota might also affect liver injury in systemic disorders involving multiple organs, as in the case of COVID-19 at a severe state. A better understanding of the gut microbial contribution to liver diseases might help us better benefit from this guest–host relationship and pave the way for novel therapies.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mariia Taguer ◽  
B. Jesse Shapiro ◽  
Corinne F. Maurice

AbstractBackgroundChanges in bacterial diversity in the human gut microbiome, characterized primarily though DNA sequencing methods, have been associated with many different adverse health conditions. However, these changes do not always reflect changes in bacterial activity, and thus how the gut microbiome is implicated in disease is still not often understood. New methods that link together bacterial function to bacterial identity are needed to further explore the role of the gut microbiome in health and disease. We optimized bioorthogonal non-canonical amino acid tagging (BONCAT) for the gut microbiota and combined it with fluorescently activated cell sorting and sequencing (FACS-Seq) to identify the translationally active members of the community. We then used this novel technique to compare and contrast to other methods of bulk community measurements of activity and viability: physiological staining of relative nucleic acid content and membrane damage. Relative nucleic acid content has previously been linked to metabolic activity, yet remains currently undefined for the human gut microbiota.ResultsTen healthy, unrelated individuals were sampled to determine the proportion and diversity of distinct physiological fractions of their gut microbiota. The translationally active bacteria represent about half of the gut microbiota, and are not distinct from the whole community. The high nucleic acid content (HNA) bacteria also represent about half of the gut microbiota, but are distinct from the whole community and correlate with the damaged subset. Perturbing the community with xenobiotics previously shown to alter bacterial activity but not diversity resulted in stronger changes in the distinct physiological fractions than in the whole community.ConclusionsBONCAT is a suitable method to probe the translationally active members of the human gut microbiota, and combined with FACS-Seq, allows for their identification. The high nucleic acid content bacteria are not necessarily the protein-producing bacteria in the community, and so further work is needed to understand the relationship between nucleic acid content and bacterial metabolism in the human gut. Taking into account physiologically distinct subsets of the gut microbiota may be more informative than relying on whole community profiling.


Gut Microbes ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-13
Author(s):  
Julia Moor ◽  
Tsering Wüthrich ◽  
Suzanne Aebi ◽  
Nadezda Mostacci ◽  
Gudrun Overesch ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander Koliada ◽  
Vladislav Moseiko ◽  
Mariana Romanenko ◽  
Oleh Lushchak ◽  
Nadiia Kryzhanovska ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Evidence was previously provided for sex-related differences in the human gut microbiota composition, and sex-specific discrepancy in hormonal profiles was proposed as a main determinant of these differences. On the basis of these findings, the assumption was made on the role of microbiota in the sexual dimorphism of human diseases. To date, sex differences in fecal microbiota were demonstrated primarily at lower taxonomic levels, whereas phylum-level differences between sexes were reported in few studies only. In the present population-based cross-sectional research, sex differences in the phylum-level human gut microbiota composition were identified in a large (total n = 2301) sample of relatively healthy individuals from Ukraine. Results Relative abundances of Firmicutes and Actinobacteria, as determined by qRT-PCR, were found to be significantly increased, while that of Bacteroidetes was significantly decreased in females compared to males. The Firmicutes to Bacteroidetes (F/B) ratio was significantly increased in females compared to males. Females had 31 % higher odds of having F/B ratio more than 1 than males. This trend was evident in all age groups. The difference between sexes was even more pronounced in the elder individuals (50+): in this age group, female participants had 56 % higher odds of having F/B ratio > 1 than the male ones. Conclusions In conclusion, sex-specific differences in the phylum-level intestinal microbiota composition were observed in the Ukraine population. The F/B ratio was significantly increased in females compared to males. Further investigation is needed to draw strong conclusions regarding the mechanistic basis for sex-specific differences in the gut microbiota composition and regarding the role of these differences in the initiation and progression of human chronic diseases.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Guojun Wu ◽  
Naisi Zhao ◽  
Chenhong Zhang ◽  
Yan Y. Lam ◽  
Liping Zhao

AbstractTo demonstrate the causative role of gut microbiome in human health and diseases, we first need to identify, via next-generation sequencing, potentially important functional members associated with specific health outcomes and disease phenotypes. However, due to the strain-level genetic complexity of the gut microbiota, microbiome datasets are highly dimensional and highly sparse in nature, making it challenging to identify putative causative agents of a particular disease phenotype. Members of an ecosystem seldomly live independently from each other. Instead, they develop local interactions and form inter-member organizations to influence the ecosystem’s higher-level patterns and functions. In the ecological study of macro-organisms, members are defined as belonging to the same “guild” if they exploit the same class of resources in a similar way or work together as a coherent functional group. Translating the concept of “guild” to the study of gut microbiota, we redefine guild as a group of bacteria that show consistent co-abundant behavior and likely to work together to contribute to the same ecological function. In this opinion article, we discuss how to use guilds as the aggregation unit to reduce dimensionality and sparsity in microbiome-wide association studies for identifying candidate gut bacteria that may causatively contribute to human health and diseases.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (19) ◽  
pp. 8850-8866
Author(s):  
Zoi Katsirma ◽  
Eirini Dimidi ◽  
Ana Rodriguez-Mateos ◽  
Kevin Whelan

A summary of the mechanisms of action by which fruit products confer effects on the human gut function, motility and the gut microbiome, as well as an exploration of the effects of processing on the active nutrient content and efficacy of fruits.


Author(s):  
Yue Zhao ◽  
Yuxia Liu ◽  
Shuang Li ◽  
Zhaoyun Peng ◽  
Xiantao Liu ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide (Ferlay et al., Int J Cancer 136:E359–386, 2015). In addition, lung cancer is associated with the highest mortality among all cancer types (Wu et al., Exp Ther Med 16:3004–3010, 2018). Previous studies report that microbiota play an important role in lung cancer. Notably, changes in lung and gut microbiota, are associated with progression of lung cancer. Several studies report that lung and gut microbiome promote lung cancer initiation and development by modulating metabolic pathways, inhibiting the function of immune cells, and producing pro-inflammatory factors. In addition, some factors such as microbiota dysbiosis, affect production of bacteriotoxins, genotoxicity and virulence effect, therefore, they play a key role in cancer progression. These findings imply that lung and gut microbiome are potential markers and targets for lung cancer. However, the role of microbiota in development and progression of lung cancer has not been fully explored. Purpose The aim of this study was to systemically review recent research findings on relationship of lung and gut microbiota with lung cancer. In addition, we explored gut–lung axis and potential mechanisms of lung and gut microbiota in modulating lung cancer progression. Conclusion Pulmonary and intestinal flora influence the occurrence, development, treatment and prognosis of lung cancer, and will provide novel strategies for prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of lung cancer.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yueqiong Ni ◽  
Zoltan Lohinai ◽  
Yoshitaro Heshiki ◽  
Balazs Dome ◽  
Judit Moldvay ◽  
...  

AbstractCachexia is associated with decreased survival in cancer patients and has a prevalence of up to 80%. The etiology of cachexia is poorly understood, and limited treatment options exist. Here, we investigated the role of the human gut microbiome in cachexia by integrating shotgun metagenomics and plasma metabolomics of 31 lung cancer patients. The cachexia group showed significant differences in the gut microbial composition, functional pathways of the metagenome, and the related plasma metabolites compared to non-cachectic patients. Branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs), methylhistamine, and vitamins were significantly depleted in the plasma of cachexia patients, which was also reflected in the depletion of relevant gut microbiota functional pathways. The enrichment of BCAAs and 3-oxocholic acid in non-cachectic patients were positively correlated with gut microbial species Prevotella copri and Lactobacillus gasseri, respectively. Furthermore, the gut microbiota capacity for lipopolysaccharides biosynthesis was significantly enriched in cachectic patients. The involvement of the gut microbiome in cachexia was further observed in a high-performance machine learning model using solely gut microbial features. Our study demonstrates the links between cachectic host metabolism and specific gut microbial species and functions in a clinical setting, suggesting that the gut microbiota could have an influence on cachexia with possible therapeutic applications.


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Deepthi. R ◽  
Vandana Rani M ◽  
Delvin T. Robin ◽  
Anusree Dileep

AbstractThe science of Ayurveda with its strong and unique fundamentals holds its domain forever amidst all scientific and medical advancements. The concept of Shadkriyakala (the different phases of disease formation) holds relevance in preventive medicine and public health management as it provides ample chance to halt the disease process at each stage by timely intervention. In this review, we would like to bring to the limelight the relevance of Ritucharya (seasonal regimen) in primary prevention by modulating the gut microbiota. The modern gut microbiome researches now help us to better explore the Ayurveda theories of Agni (digestive fire) and Ama (metabolic toxins) preached centuries back. Ayurveda firmly proclaims that no disease ever arises without the derangement of Agni (digestive fire). The whole preventive and treatment methodology in Ayurveda focuses upon the modulation and management of “Agni” (digestive fire). When the functioning of Agni is deranged, Ama (metabolic toxin) is produced and it vitiates the doshas which spread throughout the body and manifest as varied diseases. A biomedical perspective of our reviews suggests that dysbiosis of microbial flora can cause a leaky gut by which the toxins of deranged digestive metabolism enter the bloodstream. Consequently, an inflammatory response occurs within the body which expresses out as diseases opportunistically. We meticulously reviewed the influence of extrinsic factors namely diet and climate on human gut microbiota, and our analysis emphasises the application prospects of Ritucharya (seasonal regimen), in regulating the dynamic host-microbe interaction.


2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 199
Author(s):  
Na Young Lee ◽  
Ki Tae Suk

Liver cirrhosis is one of the most prevalent chronic liver diseases worldwide. In addition to viral hepatitis, diseases such as steatohepatitis, autoimmune hepatitis, sclerosing cholangitis and Wilson’s disease can also lead to cirrhosis. Moreover, alcohol can cause cirrhosis on its own and exacerbate chronic liver disease of other causes. The treatment of cirrhosis can be divided into addressing the cause of cirrhosis and reversing liver fibrosis. To this date, there is still no clear consensus on the treatment of cirrhosis. Recently, there has been a lot of interest in potential treatments that modulate the gut microbiota and gut-liver axis for the treatment of cirrhosis. According to recent studies, modulation of the gut microbiome by probiotics ameliorates the progression of liver disease. The precise mechanism for relieving cirrhosis via gut microbial modulation has not been identified. This paper summarizes the role and effects of the gut microbiome in cirrhosis based on experimental and clinical studies on absorbable antibiotics, probiotics, prebiotics, and synbiotics. Moreover, it provides evidence of a relationship between the gut microbiome and liver fibrosis.


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