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Colonic Butyrate-Producing Communities in Humans: an Overview Using Omics Data.
Marius Vital1, André Karch2, Dietmar H Pieper1
1Microbial Interactions and Processes Research Group, Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research, Braunschweig, Germany.
Msystems
|December 15, 2017
Summary
Understanding the gut microbiota
Area of Science:
- Gut Microbiota Ecology
- Metagenomics and Transcriptomics
- Host-Microbe Interactions
Background:
- Butyrate is crucial for host health, making its producers a research priority.
- Gut microbiota functional capabilities are less understood than taxonomic compositions.
- Butyrate depletion is linked to noncommunicable diseases and pathogen colonization.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze the ecology of intestinal butyrate-producing communities.
- To identify key butyrate-producing taxa and their biochemical diversity.
- To investigate the role of butyrate producers in health and disease.
Main Methods:
- Pooled analysis of 2,387 metagenomic/transcriptomic samples from diverse datasets.
- Construction of a gene catalog for butyrate synthesis pathways.
- Genome screenings and updated reference database for analysis.
Main Results:
- Butyrate producers establish early in life and are abundant in adults (>20%).
- High richness of butyrate producers observed, with 17 key taxa found in >70% of individuals.
- Reduced butyrate potential linked to diseases, especially cardiometabolic disorders.
Conclusions:
- Butyrate producers exhibit biochemical diversity and occupy various gut niches.
- Community diversity supports functional stability during disturbances and interventions.
- Findings aid precision medicine for combating gut dysbiosis and related diseases.
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