The human-microbiome superorganism and its modulation to restore health

Abstract

Microbiome is the community of microorganism that co-live with a host. The human being is the result of the integration of its genome and the coexistence with millions of microorganisms throughout its evolutionary history. Human-microbiome association can be considered a step of integration in evolution, constituting a superorganism. Many emergent diseases are related to the loss of part of this microbiome and its restoration can be achieved by different strategies. Gut microbiome imbalance is particularly associated with numerous inflammatory, immune and nervous system-related diseases by a communication pathway called microbiome–brain axis. Modulation of microbiome by administering prebiotics, like arabinoxylans, and synbiotics is a plausible treatment for dysbiosis, the regulation of neurotransmitters and alleviation of neurological manifestations.     

丁酸与胆固醇型胆结石形成的关系

胆结石是临床上最常见并且多发的消化系统疾病之一,是一种受遗传、环境、饮食等多因素影响的胆道系统疾病。其发病因素多样且临床症状不一,主要以右上腹疼痛为主要特征。随着社会的进步以及人们生活水平的提高,其发病率呈逐渐上升趋势。目前关于通过药物和手术治疗胆结石的研究越来越多,但仍存在复发率高、并发症多等弊端。近来有研究表明,肠道菌群代谢产物短链脂肪酸对胆固醇型胆结石的形成有一定的影响。笔者就其中一种短链脂肪酸—丁酸与胆固醇型胆结石形成关系的研究现状做一综述。     

龈上菌斑微生物与宿主血脂水平的相关性分析

目的: 分析龈上菌斑微生物与宿主血脂水平的相关性。方法: 采集68名45~60岁志愿者的龈上菌斑样本,提取总DNA并对其16S rDNA V3-V4区进行PCR扩增。扩增所得产物经Illumina MiSeq PE300平台测序后,进行OTU聚类、物种注释,并将注释到的物种(属水平)与宿主血脂水平作Spearman相关分析。采用SPSS 16.0软件包对数据进行统计学分析。结果: 68名志愿者的龈上菌斑样本测序所得平均序列数为41 929条,聚类所得OTU数为1 037,共注释到 25个门,45个纲,92个目,155个科和330个属。物种聚类热图显示68个样本具有相似的物种组成丰度模式。Spearman相关分析显示：在龈上菌斑微生物中,拟普雷沃菌属、小类杆菌属、消化链球菌属和普雷沃菌属7与宿主血清总胆固醇、低密度脂蛋白胆固醇水平呈负相关;宿主血清高密度脂蛋白胆固醇水平与奈瑟菌属的丰度呈正相关,但与普雷沃菌属2的丰度呈负相关。结论: 人群中龈上菌斑微生物的组成结构具有稳定性,与宿主血脂水平相关,可进一步探究龈上菌斑微生物作为宿主脂代谢状态的生物标志物。     

Overgrowth of Lactobacillus in gastric cancer

Dysbiosis of the gastric microbiome is involved in the development of gastric cancer (GC). A number of studies have demonstrated an increase in the relative abundance of Lactobacillus in GC. In this review, we present data that support the overgrowth of Lactobacillus in GC from studies on molecular and bacterial culture of the gastric microbiome, discuss the heterogenic effects of Lactobacillus on the health of human stomach, and explore the potential roles of the overgrowth of Lactobacillus in gastric carcinogenesis. Further studies are required to examine the association between Lactobacillus and GC at strain and species levels, which would facilitate to elucidate its role in the carcinogenic process.     

Targeting whole body metabolism and mitochondrial bioenergetics in the drug development for Alzheimer's disease

Aging is by far the most prominent risk factor for Alzheimer's disease (AD), and both aging and AD are associated with apparent metabolic alterations. As developing effective therapeutic interventions to treat AD is clearly in urgent need, the impact of modulating whole-body and intracellular metabolism in preclinical models and in human patients, on disease pathogenesis, have been explored. There is also an increasing awareness of differential risk and potential targeting strategies related to biological sex, microbiome, and circadian regulation. As a major part of intracellular metabolism, mitochondrial bioenergetics, mitochondrial quality-control mechanisms, and mitochondria-linked inflammatory responses have been considered for AD therapeutic interventions. This review summarizes and highlights these efforts.