Contact:
sales@biotechnologyforums.com to feature here

Thread Rating:
  • 0 Vote(s) - 0 Average
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
Gastrointestinal microbes influence weight gain and cholesterol in mice
#1
While it has been known for some time that the gastrointestinal microbiota- microbial population of the gut- influences host weight gain and adiposity, the mechanisms behind this have not been fully understood. A recent study in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA implicates a bacterial enzyme called bile salt hydrolase in communication between host and microbe that profoundly influences host weight gain, lipid metabolism and cholesterol levels in mice. The research team behind the study are based in University College Cork in Ireland and are currently considering the relevance of these findings in humans and for rational design of probiotics for control of obesity and metabolic syndrome.

The researchers developed a mouse model system that allowed them to study microbial alleles in the gut. The results of the study showed that bacterial bile salt hydrolase, which is commonly made by gut bacteria, can alter bile acids, which have been previously implicated in gut signalling pathways. Dr Cormac Gahan, senior author on the paper, further explained the significance of bile acid modification: “Recent work by other groups has shown that bile acids act as signalling molecules in the host, almost like a hormonal network, with an ability to influence host metabolism. What we have done is to show that a specific mechanism exists by which bacteria in the gut can influence this process with significant consequences for the host.”

The research team showed that if cloned bile salt hydrolase enzymes were expressed in the gastrointestinal tract of mice, they changed bile acid expression profiles and regulated expression of genes involved in lipid metabolism, cholesterol metabolism, gastrointestinal homeostasis and circadian rhythm. Furthermore, high level expression of these enzymes in conventionally raised mice resulted in reduced weight gain and plasma cholesterol. The results imply that gut microbe interactions with bile acid metabolism is a potential pathway to target in intervention in obesity and metabolic syndrome. Lead author Dr Susan Joyce concluded: “the findings may be used as a basis for the future selection of probiotics or dietary interventions which target this mechanism to regulate weight gain or high cholesterol. We now have the potential for matching probiotic strains with specific end-user needs. Work is underway to determine how this system operates in humans.”

Sources

Joyce, S.A., McSharry, J., Casey, P.G., Kinsella, M., Murphy, E.F., Shanahan, F., Hill, C. and Gahan, C.G.M. (2014). Regulation of host weight gain and lipid metabolism by bacterial bile acid modification in the gut. PNAS 111(20): 7421-7426. www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.1323599111

Press release: Science Foundation of Ireland
Like Post Reply
  

Possibly Related Threads…
Thread
Author
  /  
Last Post



Users browsing this thread:
1 Guest(s)

Gastrointestinal microbes influence weight gain and cholesterol in mice00