Gut microbiota and fecal short chain fatty acids differ with adiposity and country of origin: the METS-microbiome study

Gertrude Ecklu-Mensah, Candice Choo-Kang, Maria Gjerstad Maseng, Sonya Donato, Pascal Bovet, Bharathi Viswanathan, Kweku Bedu-Addo, Jacob Plange-Rhule, Prince Oti Boateng, Terrence E. Forrester, Marie Williams, Estelle V. Lambert, Dale Rae, Nandipha Sinyanya, Amy Luke, Brian T. Layden, Stephen O’Keefe, Jack A. Gilbert () and Lara R. Dugas ()
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Gertrude Ecklu-Mensah: University of California San Diego
Candice Choo-Kang: Loyola University Chicago
Maria Gjerstad Maseng: University of Oslo
Sonya Donato: University of California San Diego
Pascal Bovet: University Center for Primary Care and Public Health (Unisanté), Lausanne University Hospital
Bharathi Viswanathan: Ministry of Health
Kweku Bedu-Addo: SMS, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology
Jacob Plange-Rhule: SMS, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology
Prince Oti Boateng: SMS, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology
Terrence E. Forrester: University of the West Indies
Marie Williams: University of the West Indies
Estelle V. Lambert: University of Cape Town
Dale Rae: University of Cape Town
Nandipha Sinyanya: University of Cape Town
Amy Luke: Loyola University Chicago
Brian T. Layden: University of Illinois at Chicago
Stephen O’Keefe: University of Pittsburgh
Jack A. Gilbert: University of California San Diego
Lara R. Dugas: Loyola University Chicago

Nature Communications, 2023, vol. 14, issue 1, 1-17

Abstract: Abstract The relationship between microbiota, short chain fatty acids (SCFAs), and obesity remains enigmatic. We employ amplicon sequencing and targeted metabolomics in a large (n = 1904) African origin cohort from Ghana, South Africa, Jamaica, Seychelles, and the US. Microbiota diversity and fecal SCFAs are greatest in Ghanaians, and lowest in Americans, representing each end of the urbanization spectrum. Obesity is significantly associated with a reduction in SCFA concentration, microbial diversity, and SCFA synthesizing bacteria, with country of origin being the strongest explanatory factor. Diabetes, glucose state, hypertension, obesity, and sex can be accurately predicted from the global microbiota, but when analyzed at the level of country, predictive accuracy is only universally maintained for sex. Diabetes, glucose, and hypertension are only predictive in certain low-income countries. Our findings suggest that adiposity-related microbiota differences differ between low-to-middle-income compared to high-income countries. Further investigation is needed to determine the factors driving this association.

Date: 2023
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-40874-x

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