gut microbiota
- Research ArticleKetogenic Diets Induced Glucose Intolerance and Lipid Accumulation in Mice with Alterations in Gut Microbiota and Metabolites
The ketogenic diet with extremely high fat and very low carbohydrate levels is very popular in society today. Although it has beneficial effects on epilepsy and neurodegenerative diseases, how ketogenic diets impact host glucose and lipid metabolism and gut microbiota still needs further investigation.
- Perspective | Clinical Science and EpidemiologyDo an Altered Gut Microbiota and an Associated Leaky Gut Affect COVID-19 Severity?
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), which has been declared a pandemic, has exhibited a wide range of severity worldwide. Although this global variation is largely affected by socio-medical situations in each country, there is also high individual-level variation attributable to elderliness and certain underlying medical conditions, including high blood pressure, diabetes, and obesity.
- Observation | Host-Microbe BiologyDeep Sequencing Uncovers Caste-Associated Diversity of Symbionts in the Social Ant Camponotus japonicus
Social animals, such as primates and some insects, have been shown to exchange symbiotic microbes among individuals through sharing diet or habitats, resulting in increased consistency of microbiota among social partners. The ant is a representative of social insects exhibiting various castes within a colony; queens, males, and nonreproductive females (so-called workers) show distinct morphologies, physiologies, and behaviors but...
- Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyModulation of the Gut Microbiota during High-Dose Glycerol Monolaurate-Mediated Amelioration of Obesity in Mice Fed a High-Fat Diet
Obesity and associated metabolic disorders are worldwide public health issues. The gut microbiota plays a key role in the pathophysiology of diet-induced obesity. Glycerol monolaurate (GML) is a widely consumed food emulsifier with antibacterial properties. Here, we explore the anti-obesity effect of GML (1,600 mg/kg of body weight) in high-fat diet (HFD)-fed mice. HFD-fed mice were treated with 1,600 mg/kg GML. Integrated microbiome,...
- Perspective | Applied and Environmental ScienceNew View on Dietary Fiber Selection for Predictable Shifts in Gut Microbiota
Dietary fibers can be utilized to shape the human gut microbiota. However, the outcomes from most dietary fibers currently used as prebiotics are a result of competition between microbes with overlapping abilities to utilize these fibers. Thus, divergent fiber responses are observed across individuals harboring distinct microbial communities. Here, we propose that dietary fibers can be classified hierarchically according to their...
- Research Article | Molecular Biology and PhysiologyGenetic and Biochemical Analysis of Anaerobic Respiration in Bacteroides fragilis and Its Importance In Vivo
Bacteroides species are abundant in the human intestine and provide numerous beneficial properties to their hosts. The ability of Bacteroides species to convert host and dietary glycans and polysaccharides to energy is paramount to their success in the human gut. We know a great deal about the molecules that these bacteria extract from the human gut but much less about how they convert those molecules into energy. Here...
- Letter to the Editor | Host-Microbe BiologyA Complex Scenario of Nonsteroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs Induced Prostaglandin E2 Production and Gut Microbiota Alteration in Clostridium difficile-Infected Mice
- Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyThe Microbiota Promotes Arterial Thrombosis in Low-Density Lipoprotein Receptor-Deficient Mice
Our results demonstrate a functional role for the commensal microbiota in atherothrombosis. In a ferric chloride injury model of the carotid artery, GF C57BL/6J mice had increased occlusion times compared to colonized controls. Interestingly, in late atherosclerosis, HFD-fed GF Ldlr−/− mice had reduced plaque rupture-induced thrombus growth in the carotid artery and diminished ex vivo thrombus formation...
- Commentary | Host-Microbe BiologyLive and Diet by Your Gut Microbiota
Diet influences health in multiple ways. One important effect of diet is on the gut microbiota. The effects of diet are often related to an individual’s specific microbiota composition. The close links between health, diet, and gut microbiota are illustrated in a new mouse model of sepsis where the combination of a high-fat/low-fiber Western diet, antibiotics, and surgery promotes the development of lethal sepsis. Diet can also...
- Research Article | Host-Microbe BiologyInfection-Induced Intestinal Dysbiosis Is Mediated by Macrophage Activation and Nitrate Production
Toxoplasma gondii is a protozoan parasite and a leading cause of foodborne illness. Infection is initiated when the parasite invades the intestinal epithelium, and in many host species, this leads to intense inflammation and a dramatic disruption of the normal microbial ecosystem that resides in the healthy gut (the so-called microbiome). One characteristic change in...