The gut microbiome in konzo

Matthew S. Bramble, Neerja Vashist, Arthur Ko, Sambhawa Priya, Céleste Musasa, Alban Mathieu, Andre Spencer D’, Michel Lupamba Kasendue, Patrick Mamona Dilufwasayo, Kevin Karume, Joanna Nsibu, Hans Manya, Mary N. A. Uy, Brian Colwell, Michael Boivin, J. P. Banae Mayambu, Daniel Okitundu, Arnaud Droit, Dieudonné Mumba Ngoyi, Ran Blekhman, Desire Tshala-Katumbay () and Eric Vilain ()
Additional contact information
Matthew S. Bramble: Children’s National Hospital
Neerja Vashist: Children’s National Hospital
Arthur Ko: University of California, Los Angeles
Sambhawa Priya: University of Minnesota
Céleste Musasa: Children’s National Hospital
Alban Mathieu: CHU de Québec - Université Laval Research Center
Andre Spencer D’: Children’s National Hospital
Michel Lupamba Kasendue: Institut National de Recherche Biomédicale (INRB)
Patrick Mamona Dilufwasayo: Children’s National Hospital
Kevin Karume: Children’s National Hospital
Joanna Nsibu: Institut National de Recherche Biomédicale (INRB)
Hans Manya: Children’s National Hospital
Mary N. A. Uy: Children’s National Hospital
Brian Colwell: Texas A&M University
Michael Boivin: Michigan State University
J. P. Banae Mayambu: Ministry of Health National Program on Nutrition (PRONANUT)
Daniel Okitundu: University of Kinshasa
Arnaud Droit: CHU de Québec - Université Laval Research Center
Dieudonné Mumba Ngoyi: Institut National de Recherche Biomédicale (INRB)
Ran Blekhman: University of Minnesota
Desire Tshala-Katumbay: Institut National de Recherche Biomédicale (INRB)
Eric Vilain: Children’s National Hospital

Nature Communications, 2021, vol. 12, issue 1, 1-13

Abstract: Abstract Konzo, a distinct upper motor neuron disease associated with a cyanogenic diet and chronic malnutrition, predominately affects children and women of childbearing age in sub-Saharan Africa. While the exact biological mechanisms that cause this disease have largely remained elusive, host-genetics and environmental components such as the gut microbiome have been implicated. Using a large study population of 180 individuals from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where konzo is most frequent, we investigate how the structure of the gut microbiome varied across geographical contexts, as well as provide the first insight into the gut flora of children affected with this debilitating disease using shotgun metagenomic sequencing. Our findings indicate that the gut microbiome structure is highly variable depending on region of sampling, but most interestingly, we identify unique enrichments of bacterial species and functional pathways that potentially modulate the susceptibility of konzo in prone regions of the Congo.

Date: 2021
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:nat:natcom:v:12:y:2021:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-021-25694-1

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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-25694-1

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