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Primate gut microbiota induce evolutionarily salient changes in mouse neurodevelopment.

Alex R DeCasien1,2,3,4, Jacob E Aronoff5,6, Elizabeth K Mallott6,7

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Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

The gut microbiota may have supported primate brain evolution. Different primate gut microbes influenced mouse brain gene expression, particularly affecting energy metabolism and potentially neurodevelopmental pathways in large-brained species.

Keywords:
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Area of Science:

  • Evolutionary biology
  • Neuroscience
  • Microbiology

Background:

  • Primate brains are exceptionally large relative to body size, coevolving with metabolic adaptations for increased cerebral energy supply.
  • The gut microbiota (GM) influences host metabolism, but its role in primate brain evolution is not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the potential role of gut microbiota composition in primate brain evolution.
  • To determine if primate gut microbes influence host brain gene expression and metabolism.

Main Methods:

  • Germ-free mice were inoculated with gut microbiota from humans (large-brained), macaques (smaller-brained), and squirrel monkeys (large-brained).
  • Brain gene expression and metabolic pathways were analyzed in the inoculated mice.

Main Results:

  • Differences in mouse brain gene expression mirrored those between actual primate brains based on GM origin.
  • Gut microbiota from large-brained primates (humans and squirrel monkeys) upregulated genes related to energy production.
  • Human GM specifically enhanced oxidative phosphorylation gene expression and glucose metabolism pathways, while downregulating genes linked to neurodevelopmental disorders.

Conclusions:

  • Species-specific gut microbiota composition can influence host brain metabolism.
  • The gut microbiota may have played a supportive role in primate brain evolution (encephalization).
  • Further research is needed due to the preliminary nature of these findings.