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The Journal of Biological Chemistry May 2024The sulfite-reducing bacterium Bilophila wadsworthia, a common human intestinal pathobiont, is unique in its ability to metabolize a wide variety of sulfonates to...
The sulfite-reducing bacterium Bilophila wadsworthia, a common human intestinal pathobiont, is unique in its ability to metabolize a wide variety of sulfonates to generate sulfite as a terminal electron acceptor (TEA). The resulting formation of HS is implicated in inflammation and colon cancer. l-cysteate, an oxidation product of l-cysteine, is among the sulfonates metabolized by B. wadsworthia, although the enzymes involved remain unknown. Here we report a pathway for l-cysteate dissimilation in B. wadsworthia RZATAU, involving isomerization of l-cysteate to d-cysteate by a cysteate racemase (BwCuyB), followed by cleavage into pyruvate, ammonia and sulfite by a d-cysteate sulfo-lyase (BwCuyA). The strong selectivity of BwCuyA for d-cysteate over l-cysteate was rationalized by protein structural modeling. A homolog of BwCuyA in the marine bacterium Silicibacter pomeroyi (SpCuyA) was previously reported to be a l-cysteate sulfo-lyase, but our experiments confirm that SpCuyA too displays a strong selectivity for d-cysteate. Growth of B. wadsworthia with cysteate as the electron acceptor is accompanied by production of HS and induction of BwCuyA. Close homologs of BwCuyA and BwCuyB are present in diverse bacteria, including many sulfate- and sulfite-reducing bacteria, suggesting their involvement in cysteate degradation in different biological environments.
PubMed: 38750791
DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2024.107371 -
Animals : An Open Access Journal From... Apr 2024Yaks are the main pillar of plateau animal husbandry and the material basis of local herdsmen's survival. The level of mineral elements in the body is closely related to...
Microbial Metagenomes and Host Transcriptomes Reveal the Dynamic Changes of Rumen Gene Expression, Microbial Colonization and Co-Regulation of Mineral Element Metabolism in Yaks from Birth to Adulthood.
Yaks are the main pillar of plateau animal husbandry and the material basis of local herdsmen's survival. The level of mineral elements in the body is closely related to the production performance of yaks. In this study, we performed a comprehensive analysis of rumen epithelial morphology, transcriptomics and metagenomics to explore the dynamics of rumen functions, microbial colonization and functional interactions in yaks from birth to adulthood. Bacteria, eukaryotes, archaea and viruses colonized the rumen of yaks from birth to adulthood, with bacteria being the majority. Bacteroidetes and Firmicutes were the dominant phyla in five developmental stages, and the abundance of genus and significantly decreased with age. Glycoside hydrolase (GH) genes were the most highly represented in five different developmental stages, followed by glycosyltransferases (GTs) and carbohydrate-binding modules (CBMs), where the proportion of genes coding for CBMs increased with age. Integrating host transcriptome and microbial metagenome revealed 30 gene modules related to age, muscle layer thickness, nipple length and width of yaks. Among these, the MEmagenta and MEturquoise were positively correlated with these phenotypic traits. Twenty-two host genes involved in transcriptional regulation related to metal ion binding (including potassium, sodium, calcium, zinc, iron) were positively correlated with a rumen bacterial cluster 1 composed of , , , , , etc. Therefore, these studies help us to understand the interaction between rumen host and microorganisms in yaks at different ages, and further provide a reliable theoretical basis for the development of feed and mineral element supplementation for yaks at different ages.
PubMed: 38731369
DOI: 10.3390/ani14091365 -
The Clinical Respiratory Journal May 2024Previous studies have hinted at a significant link between lung cancer and the gut microbiome, yet their causal relationship remains to be elucidated.
BACKGROUND
Previous studies have hinted at a significant link between lung cancer and the gut microbiome, yet their causal relationship remains to be elucidated.
METHODS
GWAS data for small cell lung cancer (SCLC) was extracted from the FinnGen consortium, comprising 179 cases and 218 613 controls. Genetic variation data for 211 gut microbiota were obtained as instrumental variables from MiBioGen. Mendelian randomization (MR) was employed to determine the causal relationship between the two, with inverse variance weighting (IVW) being the primary method for causal analysis. The MR results were validated through several sensitivity analyses.
RESULTS
The study identified a protective effect against SCLC for the genus Eubacterium ruminantium group (OR = 0.413, 95% CI: 0.223-0.767, p = 0.00513), genus Barnesiella (OR = 0.208, 95% CI: 0.0640-0.678, p = 0.00919), family Lachnospiraceae (OR = 0.319, 95% CI: 0.107-0.948, p = 0.03979), and genus Butyricimonas (OR = 0.376, 95% CI: 0.144-0.984, p = 0.04634). Conversely, genus Intestinibacter (OR = 3.214, 95% CI: 1.303-7.926, p = 0.01125), genus Eubacterium oxidoreducens group (OR = 3.391, 95% CI: 1.215-9.467, p = 0.01973), genus Bilophila (OR = 3.547, 95% CI: 1.106-11.371, p = 0.03315), and order Bacillales (OR = 1.860, 95% CI: 1.034-3.347, p = 0.03842) were found to potentially promote the onset of SCLC.
CONCLUSION
We identified potential causal relationships between certain gut microbiota and SCLC, offering new insights into microbiome-mediated mechanisms of SCLC pathogenesis, resistance, mutations, and more.
Topics: Humans; Mendelian Randomization Analysis; Gastrointestinal Microbiome; Lung Neoplasms; Small Cell Lung Carcinoma; Genome-Wide Association Study; Male; Female; Case-Control Studies
PubMed: 38685730
DOI: 10.1111/crj.13764 -
Nature Communications Apr 2024The etiopathogenesis of diverticulitis, among the most common gastrointestinal diagnoses, remains largely unknown. By leveraging stool collected within a large...
The etiopathogenesis of diverticulitis, among the most common gastrointestinal diagnoses, remains largely unknown. By leveraging stool collected within a large prospective cohort, we performed shotgun metagenomic sequencing and untargeted metabolomics profiling among 121 women diagnosed with diverticulitis requiring antibiotics or hospitalizations (cases), matched to 121 women without diverticulitis (controls) according to age and race. Overall microbial community structure and metabolomic profiles differed in diverticulitis cases compared to controls, including enrichment of pro-inflammatory Ruminococcus gnavus, 1,7-dimethyluric acid, and histidine-related metabolites, and depletion of butyrate-producing bacteria and anti-inflammatory ceramides. Through integrated multi-omic analysis, we detected covarying microbial and metabolic features, such as Bilophila wadsworthia and bile acids, specific to diverticulitis. Additionally, we observed that microbial composition modulated the protective association between a prudent fiber-rich diet and diverticulitis. Our findings offer insights into the perturbations in inflammation-related microbial and metabolic signatures associated with diverticulitis, supporting the potential of microbial-based diagnostics and therapeutic targets.
Topics: Humans; Female; Gastrointestinal Microbiome; Middle Aged; Diverticulitis; Feces; Aged; Prospective Studies; Bilophila; Metabolomics; Case-Control Studies; Clostridiales; Bile Acids and Salts; Adult; Dietary Fiber; Metabolome; Metagenomics
PubMed: 38684664
DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-47859-4 -
International Journal of Molecular... Apr 2024Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) is a complex disorder whose prevalence is rapidly growing in South America. The disturbances in the...
Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) is a complex disorder whose prevalence is rapidly growing in South America. The disturbances in the microbiota-gut-liver axis impact the liver damaging processes toward fibrosis. Gut microbiota status is shaped by dietary and lifestyle factors, depending on geographic location. We aimed to identify microbial signatures in a group of Chilean MASLD patients. Forty subjects were recruited, including healthy controls (HCs), overweight/obese subjects (Ow/Ob), patients with MASLD without fibrosis (MASLD/F-), and MASLD with fibrosis (MASLD/F+). Both MASLD and fibrosis were detected through elastography and/or biopsy, and fecal microbiota were analyzed through deep sequencing. Despite no differences in α- and β-diversity among all groups, a higher abundance of and a lower presence of Defluviitaleaceae, Lachnospiraceae ND3007, and was found in MASLD/F- and MASLD/F+, compared to HC. Ruminococcaceae UCG-013 and were more abundant in MASLD/F+ than in Ow/Ob; both significantly differed between MASLD/F- and MASLD/F+, compared to HC. Significant positive correlations were observed between liver stiffness and , , , and abundance. Our results show that MASLD is associated with changes in bacterial taxa that are known to be involved in bile acid metabolism and SCFA production, with some of them being more specifically linked to fibrosis.
Topics: Humans; Gastrointestinal Microbiome; Male; Female; Middle Aged; Adult; Liver Cirrhosis; Feces; Liver; Fatty Liver; Disease Progression; Obesity; Chile; Bacteria; Aged
PubMed: 38673972
DOI: 10.3390/ijms25084387 -
Metabolites Apr 2024Rhubarb (RR), Chinese name Dahuang, is commonly used in the treatment of ischemic stroke (IS). However, its potential mechanism is not fully elucidated. This study...
Rhubarb (RR), Chinese name Dahuang, is commonly used in the treatment of ischemic stroke (IS). However, its potential mechanism is not fully elucidated. This study intended to verify the effect of RR on IS and investigate the possible mechanism of RR in preventing IS. IS in male rats was induced by embolic middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) surgery, and drug administration was applied half an hour before surgery. RR dramatically decreased the neurological deficit scores, the cerebral infarct volume, and the cerebral edema rate, and improved the regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) and histopathological changes in the brain of MCAO rats. The 16S rRNA analysis showed the harmful microbes such as and were decreased, and the beneficial microbes such as , , , and were significantly increased, after RR pretreatment. H-nuclear magnetic resonance (H-NMR) was used to detect serum metabolomics, and RR treatment significantly changed the levels of metabolites such as isoleucine, valine, N6-acetyllysine, methionine, 3-aminoisobutyric acid, N, N-dimethylglycine, propylene glycol, trimethylamine N-oxide, myo-inositol, choline, betaine, lactate, glucose, and lipid, and the enrichment analysis of differential metabolites showed that RR may participate in the regulation of amino acid metabolism and energy metabolism. RR exerts the role of anti-IS via regulating gut bacteria and metabolic pathways.
PubMed: 38668344
DOI: 10.3390/metabo14040216 -
Frontiers in Cellular and Infection... 2024Children have regional dynamics in the gut microbiota development trajectory. Hitherto, the features and influencing factors of the gut microbiota and fecal and plasma...
INTRODUCTION
Children have regional dynamics in the gut microbiota development trajectory. Hitherto, the features and influencing factors of the gut microbiota and fecal and plasma metabolites in children from Northwest China remain unclear.
METHODS
Shotgun metagenomic sequencing and untargeted metabolomics were performed on 100 healthy volunteers aged 2-12 years.
RESULTS
Age, body mass index (BMI), regular physical exercise (RPE), and delivery mode (DM) significantly affect gut microbiota and metabolites. , , , , and predicted pathway propanoate production were significantly increased with age while , , and carbohydrate degradation were decreased. Fecal metabolome revealed that the metabolism of caffeine, amino acids, and lipid significantly increased with age while galactose metabolism decreased. Noticeably, BMI was positively associated with pathogens including , , , and amino acid metabolism but negatively associated with beneficial , , , and caffeine metabolism. RPE has increased probiotic and , acetate and lactate production, and major nutrient metabolism in gut and plasma, but decreased pathobiont , taurine degradation, and pentose phosphate pathway. Interestingly, DM affects the gut microbiota and metabolites throughout the whole childhood. , , , primary bile acid, and neomycin biosynthesis were enriched in eutocia, while anti-inflammatory , , , and pathogenic , , and amino acid metabolism were enriched in Cesarean section children.
DISCUSSION
Our results provided theoretical and data foundation for the gut microbiota and metabolites in preadolescent children's growth and development in Northwest China.
Topics: Pregnancy; Child; Humans; Female; Gastrointestinal Microbiome; Caffeine; Cesarean Section; Urban Population; Metabolome; Amino Acids
PubMed: 38585649
DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2024.1374544 -
Frontiers in Pharmacology 2024Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a clinical condition associated with multiple metabolic risk factors leading to type 2 diabetes mellitus and other metabolic diseases....
Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a clinical condition associated with multiple metabolic risk factors leading to type 2 diabetes mellitus and other metabolic diseases. Recent evidence suggests that modulating adipose tissue to adaptive thermogenesis may offer therapeutic potential for MetS. Xiasangju (XSJ) is a marketed drug and dietary supplement used for the treatment of metabolic disease with anti-inflammatory activity. This study investigated the therapeutic effects of XSJ and the underlying mechanisms affecting the activation of brown adipose tissue (BAT) in MetS. The results revealed that XSJ ameliorated MetS by enhancing glucose and lipid metabolism, leading to reduced body weight and abdominal circumference, decreased adipose tissue and liver index, and improved blood glucose tolerance. XSJ administration stimulated catecholamine biosynthesis, increasing noradrenaline (NA) levels and activating NA-mediated proteins in BAT. Thus, BAT enhanced thermogenesis and oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS). Moreover, XSJ induced changes in gut microbiota composition, with an increase in abundance and a decrease in , , , and . XSJ upregulated the proteins associated with intestinal tight junctions corresponding with lower serum lipopolysaccharide (LPS), tumor necrosis factor (TNF-) monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels to maintain NA signaling transport. In summary, XSJ may alleviate MetS by promoting thermogenesis in BAT to ultimately boost energy metabolism through increasing NA biosynthesis, strengthening intestinal barrier integrity and reducing low-grade inflammation. These findings suggest XSJ has potential as a natural therapeutic agent for the treatment of MetS.
PubMed: 38576483
DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2024.1371929 -
Microorganisms Feb 2024Gut dysbiosis and subclinical intestinal damage are common in cirrhosis. The aim of this study was to examine the association of intestinal damage biomarkers (diamine...
Gut dysbiosis and subclinical intestinal damage are common in cirrhosis. The aim of this study was to examine the association of intestinal damage biomarkers (diamine oxidase [DAO], claudin 3, and intestinal fatty acid binding protein [I-FABP; FABP2]) with the state of the gut microbiota in cirrhosis. The blood levels of DAO were inversely correlated with blood levels of claudin 3, lipopolysaccharide (LPS), presepsin, TNF-α, and the severity of cirrhosis according to Child-Pugh scores. The blood level of I-FABP was directly correlated with the blood level of claudin 3 but not with that of DAO. Patients with small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) had lower DAO levels than patients without SIBO. There was no significant difference in claudin 3 levels and I-FABP detection rates between patients with and without SIBO. The DAO level was directly correlated with the abundance of Akkermansiaceae, Akkermansia, Allisonella, Clostridiaceae, Dialister, Lactobacillus, Muribaculaceae, Negativibacillus, Ruminococcus, Thiomicrospiraceae, Verrucomicrobiae, and Verrucomicrobiota; and it was inversely correlated with the abundance of Anaerostipes, Erysipelatoclostridium, and Vibrio. The I-FABP level was directly correlated with Anaerostipes, Bacteroidia, Bacteroidota, Bilophila, Megamonas, and Selenomonadaceae; and it was inversely correlated with the abundance of Brucella, Pseudomonadaceae, Pseudomonas, and Vibrionaceae. The claudin 3 level was directly correlated with Anaerostipes abundance and was inversely correlated with the abundance of Brucella, Coriobacteriia, Eggerthellaceae, and Lactobacillus.
PubMed: 38543514
DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms12030463 -
NPJ Biofilms and Microbiomes Mar 2024Early dysbiosis in the gut microbiota may contribute to the severity of acute pancreatitis (AP), however, a comprehensive understanding of the gut microbiome, potential...
Early dysbiosis in the gut microbiota may contribute to the severity of acute pancreatitis (AP), however, a comprehensive understanding of the gut microbiome, potential pathobionts, and host metabolome in individuals with AP remains elusive. Hence, we employed fecal whole-metagenome shotgun sequencing in 82 AP patients and 115 matched healthy controls, complemented by untargeted serum metabolome and lipidome profiling in a subset of participants. Analyses of the gut microbiome in AP patients revealed reduced diversity, disrupted microbial functions, and altered abundance of 77 species, influenced by both etiology and severity. AP-enriched species, mostly potential pathobionts, correlated positively with host liver function and serum lipid indicators. Conversely, many AP-depleted species were short-chain fatty acid producers. Gut microflora changes were accompanied by shifts in the serum metabolome and lipidome. Specifically, certain gut species, like enriched Bilophila wadsworthia and depleted Bifidobacterium spp., appeared to contribute to elevated triglyceride levels in biliary or hyperlipidemic AP patients. Through culturing and whole-genome sequencing of bacterial isolates, we identified virulence factors and clinically relevant antibiotic resistance in patient-derived strains, suggesting a predisposition to opportunistic infections. Finally, our study demonstrated that gavage of specific pathobionts could exacerbate pancreatitis in a caerulein-treated mouse model. In conclusion, our comprehensive analysis sheds light on the gut microbiome and serum metabolome in AP, elucidating the role of pathobionts in disease progression. These insights offer valuable perspectives for etiologic diagnosis, prevention, and intervention in AP and related conditions.
Topics: Animals; Mice; Humans; Gastrointestinal Microbiome; Metagenome; Acute Disease; Pancreatitis; RNA, Ribosomal, 16S
PubMed: 38514648
DOI: 10.1038/s41522-024-00499-4