ABSTRACT: We investigated the individual and combined effects of diet and physical exercise on metabolism and the gut microbiome to establish how these lifestyle factors influence host-microbiome cometabolism. Urinary and fecal samples were collected from athletes and less active controls. Individuals were further classified according to an objective dietary assessment score of adherence to healthy dietary habits according to WHO guidelines, calculated from their proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H-NMR) urinary profiles. Subsequent models were generated comparing extremes of dietary habits, exercise, and the combined effect of both. Differences in metabolic phenotypes and gut microbiome profiles between the two groups were assessed. Each of the models pertaining to diet healthiness, physical exercise, or a combination of both displayed a metabolic and functional microbial signature, with a significant proportion of the metabolites identified as discriminating between the various pairwise comparisons resulting from gut microbe-host cometabolism. Microbial diversity was associated with a combination of high adherence to healthy dietary habits and exercise and was correlated with a distinct array of microbially derived metabolites, including markers of proteolytic activity. Improved control of dietary confounders, through the use of an objective dietary assessment score, has uncovered further insights into the complex, multifactorial relationship between diet, exercise, the gut microbiome, and metabolism. Furthermore, the observation of higher proteolytic activity associated with higher microbial diversity indicates that increased microbial diversity may confer deleterious as well as beneficial effects on the host.IMPORTANCE Improved control of dietary confounders, through the use of an objective dietary assessment score, has uncovered further insights into the complex, multifactorial relationship between diet, exercise, the gut microbiome, and metabolism. Each of the models pertaining to diet healthiness, physical exercise, or a combination of both, displayed a distinct metabolic and functional microbial signature. A significant proportion of the metabolites identified as discriminating between the various pairwise comparisons result from gut microbe-host cometabolism, and the identified interactions have expanded current knowledge in this area. Furthermore, although increased microbial diversity has previously been linked with health, our observation of higher microbial diversity being associated with increased proteolytic activity indicates that it may confer deleterious as well as beneficial effects on the host.
