Short-chain fatty acids propionate and butyrate control growth and differentiation linked to cellular metabolism [ATAC-Seq]
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ABSTRACT: The short-chain fatty acids (SCFA) propionate and butyrate are produced in large amounts by microbial metabolism and have been identified as unique acyl lysine histone marks. In order to better understand the function of these modifications we used ChIP-Seq to map the genome-wide location of four short-chain acyl histone marks H3K18pr/bu and H4K12pr/bu in treated and untreated colorectal cancer (CRC) and normal cells, as well as in mouse intestines in vivo. We correlate these marks with open chromatin regions along with gene expression to access the function of the target regions. Our data demonstrate that propionate and butyrate act as promoters of growth, differentiation as well as ion transport. We propose a mechanism involving direct modification of specific genomic regions, resulting in increased chromatin accessibility, and in case of butyrate, opposing effects on the proliferation of normal versus CRC cells.
Project description:The short-chain fatty acids (SCFA) propionate and butyrate are produced in large amounts by microbial metabolism and have been identified as unique acyl lysine histone marks. In order to better understand the function of these modifications we used ChIP-Seq to map the genome-wide location of four short-chain acyl histone marks H3K18pr/bu and H4K12pr/bu in treated and untreated colorectal cancer (CRC) and normal cells, as well as in mouse intestines in vivo. We correlate these marks with open chromatin regions along with gene expression to access the function of the target regions. Our data demonstrate that propionate and butyrate act as promoters of growth, differentiation as well as ion transport. We propose a mechanism involving direct modification of specific genomic regions, resulting in increased chromatin accessibility, and in case of butyrate, opposing effects on the proliferation of normal versus CRC cells.
Project description:The short-chain fatty acids (SCFA) propionate and butyrate are produced in large amounts by microbial metabolism and have been identified as unique acyl lysine histone marks. In order to better understand the function of these modifications we used ChIP-Seq to map the genome-wide location of four short-chain acyl histone marks H3K18pr/bu and H4K12pr/bu in treated and untreated colorectal cancer (CRC) and normal cells, as well as in mouse intestines in vivo. We correlate these marks with open chromatin regions along with gene expression to access the function of the target regions. Our data demonstrate that propionate and butyrate act as promoters of growth, differentiation as well as ion transport. We propose a mechanism involving direct modification of specific genomic regions, resulting in increased chromatin accessibility, and in case of butyrate, opposing effects on the proliferation of normal versus CRC cells.
Project description:The short-chain fatty acids (SCFA) propionate and butyrate are produced in large amounts by microbial metabolism and have been identified as unique acyl lysine histone marks. In order to better understand the function of these modifications we used ChIP-Seq to map the genome-wide location of four short-chain acyl histone marks H3K18pr/bu and H4K12pr/bu in treated and untreated colorectal cancer (CRC) and normal cells, as well as in mouse intestines in vivo. We correlate these marks with open chromatin regions along with gene expression to access the function of the target regions. Our data demonstrate that propionate and butyrate act as promoters of growth, differentiation as well as ion transport. We propose a mechanism involving direct modification of specific genomic regions, resulting in increased chromatin accessibility, and in case of butyrate, opposing effects on the proliferation of normal versus CRC cells.
Project description:Background: Short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), mainly acetate, propionate and butyrate, are produced by gut microbiota through fermentation of complex carbohydrates that cannot be digested by the human host. They affect gut health and can contribute at the distal level to the pathophysiology of several diseases, including renal pathologies. Methods: SCFA levels were measured in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients (n = 54) at different stages of the disease and associations with renal function and inflammation parameters were examined. The impact of propionate and butyrate in pathways triggered in tubular cells under inflammatory conditions was analysed using genome-wide expression assays. Finally, a pre-clinical mouse model of folic acid-induced transition from acute kidney injury to CKD was used to analyse the preventive and therapeutic potential of these microbial metabolites in the development of CKD. Results: Faecal levels of propionate and butyrate in CKD patients gradually reduce as the disease progresses, and do so in close association with established clinical parameters for serum creatinine, blood urea nitrogen and the estimated glomerular filtration rate. Propionate and butyrate jointly downregulated the expression of 103 genes related to inflammatory processes and immune system activation triggered by TNF-α in tubular cells. In vivo, the administration of propionate and butyrate, either before or soon after injury, respectively prevented and slowed the progression of damage. This was indicated by a decrease in renal injury markers, the expression of pro-inflammatory and pro-fibrotic markers, and recovery of renal function over the long term. Conclusions: Propionate and butyrate levels are associated with a progressive loss of renal function in CKD patients. Early administration of these SCFAs prevents disease advancement in a pre-clinical model of acute renal damage, demonstrating their therapeutic potential independently of the gut microbiota.
Project description:Intestinal epithelial cells and the intestinal microbiota are in a mutualistic relationship that is dependent on communication. This communication is multifaceted, but one aspect is communication through compounds produced by the microbiota such as the short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) butyrate, propionate and acetate. Studying the effects of SCFAs and especially butyrate in intestinal epithelial cell lines like Caco-2 cells has been proven problematic. In contrast to the in vivo intestinal epithelium, Caco-2 cells do not use butyrate as an energy source, leading to a build-up of butyrate. Therefore, we used human induced pluripotent stem cell derived intestinal epithelial cells, grown as a cell layer, to study the effects of butyrate, propionate and acetate on whole genome gene expression in the cells. For this, cells were exposed to concentrations of 1 and 10 mM of the individual short-chain fatty acids for 24 hours. Unique gene expression profiles were observed for each of the SCFAs in a concentration-dependent manner. Evaluation on both an individual gene level and pathway level showed that butyrate induced the biggest effects followed by propionate and then acetate. Several known effects of SCFAs on intestinal cells were confirmed, such as effects on metabolism and immune responses. The changes in metabolic pathways in the intestinal epithelial cell layers in this study demonstrate that there is a switch in energy source from glucose to SCFAs, thus induced pluripotent stem cell derived intestinal epithelial cell are responding in a similar manner to SCFAs as in vivo intestinal tissues.
Project description:Acetate, propionate and butyrate are the main short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) that arise from the fermentation of fibers by the colonic microbiota. While many studies focus on the regulatory role of SCFAs, their quantitative role as a catabolic or anabolic substrate for the host has received relatively little attention. To investigate this aspect, we infused conscious mice with physiological quantities of stable isotopes [1-13C]acetate, [2-13C]propionate or [2,4-13C2]butyrate directly into the cecum, which is the natural production site in mice, and analyzed their interconversion by the microbiota as well as their metabolism by the host. Cecal interconversion - pointing to microbial cross-feeding - was high between acetate and butyrate, low between butyrate and propionate and almost absent between acetate and propionate. As much as 62% of infused propionate was used in whole-body glucose production, in line with its role as gluconeogenic substrate. Conversely, glucose synthesis from propionate accounted for 69% of total glucose production. The synthesis of palmitate and cholesterol in the liver was high from cecal acetate (2.8% and 0.7%, respectively) and butyrate (2.7% and 0.9%, respectively) as substrates, but low or absent from propionate (0.6% and 0.0%, respectively). Label incorporation due to chain elongation of stearate was approximately 8-fold higher than de novo synthesis of stearate. Microarray data suggested that SCFAs exert only a mild regulatory effect on the expression of genes involved in hepatic metabolic pathways during the 6h infusion period. Altogether, gut-derived acetate, propionate and butyrate play important roles as substrates for glucose, cholesterol and lipid metabolism. Mice were infused in cecum with stably-labelled isotopes of the three main short chain fatty acids or control solution. After 6 hrs, livers were removed and pooled RNA samples were subjected to gene expression profiling.
Project description:Short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) are immunomodulatory compounds produced by the microbiome through fermentation of dietary fibre. Although they are generally considered beneficial for gut health, patients suffering from inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) have shown poor tolerance to fibre-rich diets, suggesting that SCFAs may have contrary effects under inflammatory conditions. To investigate this, we examined the effect of SCFAs on human macrophages in the presence of toll-like receptor agonists. In contrast to their anti-inflammatory effects under steady state conditions, we observed that the SCFAs butyrate and propionate triggered the activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome when added in conjunction with TLR agonists. Mechanistically, butyrate and propionate activated NLRP3 by inhibiting HDACs 1-3 and 10, leading to an uneven distribution of histone hyperacetylation that resulted in alterations in the transcriptome. Specifically, there was a lack of hyperacetylation at the loci of the CFLAR and IL10 genes, two important inhibitors of NLRP3 inflammasome activation. The concurrent loss of transcription and protein expression of cFLIP and IL-10 enabled caspase-8-dependent NLRP3-inflammasome activation. SCFA-driven NLRP3 activation did not require potassium efflux and did not result in cell death but rather triggered hyperactivation and IL-1b release. Our findings demonstrate that butyrate and propionate are bacterially-derived, viability-dependent danger signals (vita-PAMPs) that regulate NLRP3 inflammasome activation through epigenetic modulation of the inflammatory response.
Project description:Short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) are immunomodulatory compounds produced by the microbiome through fermentation of dietary fibre. Although they are generally considered beneficial for gut health, patients suffering from inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) have shown poor tolerance to fibre-rich diets, suggesting that SCFAs may have contrary effects under inflammatory conditions. To investigate this, we examined the effect of SCFAs on human macrophages in the presence of toll-like receptor agonists. In contrast to their anti-inflammatory effects under steady state conditions, we observed that the SCFAs butyrate and propionate triggered the activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome when added in conjunction with TLR agonists. Mechanistically, butyrate and propionate activated NLRP3 by inhibiting HDACs 1-3 and 10, leading to an uneven distribution of histone hyperacetylation that resulted in alterations in the transcriptome. Specifically, there was a lack of hyperacetylation at the loci of the CFLAR and IL10 genes, two important inhibitors of NLRP3 inflammasome activation. The concurrent loss of transcription and protein expression of cFLIP and IL-10 enabled caspase-8-dependent NLRP3-inflammasome activation. SCFA-driven NLRP3 activation did not require potassium efflux and did not result in cell death but rather triggered hyperactivation and IL-1b release. Our findings demonstrate that butyrate and propionate are bacterially-derived, viability-dependent danger signals (vita-PAMPs) that regulate NLRP3 inflammasome activation through epigenetic modulation of the inflammatory response.
Project description:Acetate, propionate and butyrate are the main short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) that arise from the fermentation of fibers by the colonic microbiota. While many studies focus on the regulatory role of SCFAs, their quantitative role as a catabolic or anabolic substrate for the host has received relatively little attention. To investigate this aspect, we infused conscious mice with physiological quantities of stable isotopes [1-13C]acetate, [2-13C]propionate or [2,4-13C2]butyrate directly into the cecum, which is the natural production site in mice, and analyzed their interconversion by the microbiota as well as their metabolism by the host. Cecal interconversion - pointing to microbial cross-feeding - was high between acetate and butyrate, low between butyrate and propionate and almost absent between acetate and propionate. As much as 62% of infused propionate was used in whole-body glucose production, in line with its role as gluconeogenic substrate. Conversely, glucose synthesis from propionate accounted for 69% of total glucose production. The synthesis of palmitate and cholesterol in the liver was high from cecal acetate (2.8% and 0.7%, respectively) and butyrate (2.7% and 0.9%, respectively) as substrates, but low or absent from propionate (0.6% and 0.0%, respectively). Label incorporation due to chain elongation of stearate was approximately 8-fold higher than de novo synthesis of stearate. Microarray data suggested that SCFAs exert only a mild regulatory effect on the expression of genes involved in hepatic metabolic pathways during the 6h infusion period. Altogether, gut-derived acetate, propionate and butyrate play important roles as substrates for glucose, cholesterol and lipid metabolism.
Project description:Evidence has accumulated that gut microbiota and its metabolites, in particular, a short chain fatty acid propionate, are significant contributors to the pathogenesis of a variety of diseases, although little is known regarding its impact on pediatric bronchial asthma, one of the most common allergic diseases in childhood. This study aimed to elucidate whether, and if so how, intestinal propionate during lactation is involved in the development of BA. In order to perform a bias-free and comprehensive genetic screening of intestinal eosinophils, we next performed RNA sequencing analysis on SILP eosinophils sorted from offspring mice of mothers fed with propionate-containing water or control water