Project description:Morphine and its pharmacological derivatives are the most prescribed analgesics for moderate to severe pain management. However, chronic use of morphine reduces pathogen clearance and induces bacterial translocation across the gut barrier. The enteric microbiome has been shown to play a critical role in the preservation of the mucosal barrier function and metabolic homeostasis. Here, we show for the first time, using bacterial 16s rDNA sequencing, that chronic morphine treatment significantly alters the gut microbial composition and induces preferential expansion of the gram-positive pathogenic and reduction of bile-deconjugating bacterial strains. A significant reduction in both primary and secondary bile acid levels was seen in the gut, but not in the liver with morphine treatment. Morphine induced microbial dysbiosis and gut barrier disruption was rescued by transplanting placebo-treated microbiota into morphine-treated animals, indicating that microbiome modulation could be exploited as a therapeutic strategy for patients using morphine for pain management. In this study, we establish a link between the two phenomena, namely gut barrier compromise and dysregulated bile acid metabolism. We show for the first time that morphine fosters significant gut microbial dysbiosis and disrupts cholesterol/bile acid metabolism. Changes in the gut microbial composition is strongly correlated to disruption in host inflammatory homeostasis13,14 and in many diseases (e.g. cancer/HIV infection), persistent inflammation is known to aid and promote the progression of the primary morbidity. We show here that chronic morphine, gut microbial dysbiosis, disruption of cholesterol/bile acid metabolism and gut inflammation; have a linear correlation. This opens up the prospect of devising minimally invasive adjunct treatment strategies involving microbiome and bile acid modulation and thus bringing down morphine-mediated inflammation in the host.
Project description:Bile acid diarrhoea is a chronic condition caused by increased delivery of bile acids to the colon. The underlying mechanisms remain to be elucidated. To investigate genes involved in bile acid diarrhoea, systems-level analyses were employed on a rat bile acid diarrhoea model. Twelve male Wistar Munich rats, housed in metabolic cages, were fed either control or bile acid-mixed (1% w/w) diets for ten days. Food intake, water intake, urine volume, bodyweight and faecal output were monitored daily. After euthanasia, colonic epithelial cells were isolated using calcium-chelation and processed for systems-level analyses, i.e. RNA-sequencing transcriptomics and mass spectrometry proteomics. Bile acid-fed rats suffered diarrhoea, indicated by increased drinking, faeces weight and faecal water content compared with control rats. Urine output was unchanged. With bile acid-feeding, RNA-sequencing revealed 204 increased and 401 decreased mRNAs; mass spectrometry 183 increased and 111 decreased proteins. Among the altered genes were genes associated with electrolyte and water transport (including Slc12a7, Clca4 and Aqp3) and genes associated with bile acid transport (Slc2b1, Abcg2, Slc51a, Slc51b and Fabps). Correlation analysis showed a significant positive correlation (Pearson’s r=0.28) between changes in mRNA-expression and changes in protein-expression. However, caution must be exercised in making a direct correlation between experimentally determined transcriptomes and proteomes. Genes associated with bile acid transport responded to bile acid-feeding, suggesting that colonic bile acid transport occur by regulated protein facilitated mechanisms rather than passive diffusion. In addition, the study provides annotated rat colonic epithelial cell transcriptome and proteome with response to bile acid-feeding.
Project description:Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is rapidly becoming the most common liver disease worldwide, yet the pathogenesis of NAFLD is only partially understood. Here, we investigated the role of the gut bacteria in NAFLD by stimulating the gut bacteria via feeding mice the fermentable dietary fiber guar gum and suppressing the gut bacteria via chronic oral administration of antibiotics. Guar gum feeding profoundly altered the gut microbiota composition, in parallel with reduced diet-induced obesity and improved glucose tolerance. Strikingly, despite reducing adipose tissue mass and inflammation, guar gum enhanced hepatic inflammation and fibrosis, concurrent with markedly elevated plasma and hepatic bile acid levels. Consistent with a role of elevated bile acids in the liver phenotype, treatment of mice with taurocholic acid stimulated hepatic inflammation and fibrosis. In contrast to guar gum, chronic oral administration of antibiotics effectively suppressed the gut bacteria, decreased portal secondary bile acid levels, and attenuated hepatic inflammation and fibrosis. Neither guar gum or antibiotics influenced plasma lipopolysaccharide levels. In conclusion, our data indicate a causal link between changes in gut microbiota and hepatic inflammation and fibrosis in a mouse model of NAFLD, possibly via alterations in bile acids.
Project description:Bile acid diarrhoea is a chronic condition with increased delivery of bile acids to the colon causing diarrhoea. In this study we used a rodent model of bile acid malabsorption to investigate the general impact on increased levels of bile acids on mRNA- and protein-expression in colon epithelial cells. Twelve male Wistar Munich rats were housed in metabolic cages and fed control or bile acid-mixed (1% w/w) diets for ten days. After euthanasia, colonic epithelial cells were isolated using Ca2+ chelation and processed for mass spectrometry-based proteomics to quantify changes in protein expressions.
Project description:Many patients suffer from chronic diarrhoea after surgical treatment for cancer in the right side of the colon.
The investigators’ main hypothesis is that colon cancer patients with chronic diarrhoea have a higher risk of bile acid malabsorption compared with colon cancer patients without diarrhoea.
The investigators also expect that a part of the cases of bile acid malabsorption is caused by underlying bacterial overgrowth in the small bowel.
The investigators assume that patients with severe bile acid malabsorption have a lower value of FGF19 in the blood compared to patients with moderate or none bile acid malabsorption.
Furthermore, it is assumed that patients with chronic diarrhoea and documented bile acid malabsorption after surgical treatment for right-sided colon cancer will get improved bowel function when treated with a bile acid binder, or antibiotics in case of bacterial overgrowth.
Project description:The emerging alphavirus chikungunya virus (CHIKV) has infected millions of people. However, the factors modulating disease outcome remain poorly understood. We show that depletion of the gut microbiota in oral antibiotic-treated or germ-free mice leads to greater CHIKV infection and spread within one day of virus inoculation. Perturbation of the gut microbiota alters TLR7-MyD88 signaling in plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) and blunts systemic production of type I interferon (IFN). Consequently, circulating monocytes express fewer IFN-stimulated genes and become permissive for CHIKV infection. Reconstitution with a single commensal bacterial species, Clostridium scindens, or its derived metabolite, the bile acid deoxycholic acid, can restore pDC- and MyD88-dependent type I IFN responses to restrict systemic CHIKV infection and transmission back to vector mosquitoes. Thus, commensal gut bacteria modulate antiviral immunity and levels of circulating alphaviruses within hours of infection through a bile acid-pDC-IFN signaling axis, which affects virus dissemination and potentially, epidemic spread
Project description:The emerging alphavirus chikungunya virus (CHIKV) has infected millions of people. However, the factors modulating disease outcome remain poorly understood. We show that depletion of the gut microbiota in oral antibiotic-treated or germ-free mice leads to greater CHIKV infection and spread within one day of virus inoculation. Perturbation of the gut microbiota alters TLR7-MyD88 signaling in plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) and blunts systemic production of type I interferon (IFN). Consequently, circulating monocytes express fewer IFN-stimulated genes and become permissive for CHIKV infection. Reconstitution with a single commensal bacterial species, Clostridium scindens, or its derived metabolite, the bile acid deoxycholic acid, can restore pDC- and MyD88-dependent type I IFN responses to restrict systemic CHIKV infection and transmission back to vector mosquitoes. Thus, commensal gut bacteria modulate antiviral immunity and levels of circulating alphaviruses within hours of infection through a bile acid-pDC-IFN signaling axis, which affects virus dissemination and potentially, epidemic spread 3 biological replicates were processed per time point and group
Project description:Objective: Roux-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) surgery is a last treatment resort to induce substantial and sustained weight loss in severe obesity. The anatomical rearrangement affects the intestinal microbiota but so far, little information is available how it interferes with microbial functionality and microbial-host interaction independent from weight loss. Design: A RYGB rat model was utilized and compared to sham-operated controls which were kept at matched body weight as RYGB animals by food restriction. We assessed microbial taxonomy by 16S rRNA gene sequencing and functional activity by metaproteomics and metabolomics on microbiota samples collected separately from the ileum, the cecum as well as the colon and separately analysed the lumen and mucus associated microbiota. Results: Altered gut architecture in RYGB strongly affected the occurrence of Actinobacteria, especially Bifidobacteriaceae and Proteobacteria which were increased, whereas Firmicutes were decreased, although Streptococcaceae and Clostridium perfringens were observed at higher abundances. A decrease of conjugated as well as secondary bile acids was observed in the RYGB-gut lumen. In addition the arginine biosynthesis pathway in the microbiota was altered, indicated by the changes in abundance of upstream metabolites and enzymes, resulting in lower levels of arginine and higher levels of aspartate in the colon after RYGB. Conclusion: The anatomical rearrangement in RYGB affects microbiota composition and functionality by changes in amino acid and bile acid metabolism, independent of weight loss. The shift in microbiota taxonomic structure after RYGB may be mediated by the resulting change in composition of the bile acid pool in the gut lumen.
Project description:The gut microbiota has been implicated in obesity and cardiometabolic diseases, although evidence in humans is scarce. We investigated how gut microbiota manipulation by antibiotics (7-day administration of amoxicillin, vancomycin, or placebo) affects host metabolism in 57 obese, prediabetic men. Vancomycin, but not amoxicillin, decreased bacterial diversity and reduced Firmicutes involved in short-chain fatty acid and bile acid metabolism, concomitant with altered plasma and/or fecal metabolite concentrations. Adipose tissue gene expression of oxidative pathways was upregulated by antibiotics, whereas immune-related pathways were downregulated by vancomycin. Antibiotics did not affect tissue-specific insulin sensitivity, energy/substrate metabolism, postprandial hormones and metabolites, systemic inflammation, gut permeability, and adipocyte size. Importantly, energy harvest, adipocyte size, and whole-body insulin sensitivity were not altered at 8-week follow-up, despite a still considerably altered microbial composition, indicating that interference with adult microbiota by 7-day antibiotic treatment has no clinically relevant impact on metabolic health in obese humans. This randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind study had a 3-armed parallel design. Overweight/obese participants were randomized to oral intake of amoxicillin, vancomycin or placebo for 7 consecutive days. After an overnight fast, subcutaneous adipose tissue biopsies were taken that were subjected to gene expression profiling by array.
Project description:The study is about the role of Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron in the human gut microbiota, specifically its ability to form biofilms in response to bile salts. The study found that bile induces the expression of certain efflux pumps, and inhibiting these pumps impairs biofilm formation. Among the induced pumps, the BipABC pump is crucial for biofilm formation as it is involved in the efflux of magnesium, which affects the biofilm's extracellular matrix and structure. This discovery sheds light on how intestinal chemical cues, like bile salts, regulate biofilm formation in B. thetaiotaomicron, a significant gut symbiont.