Influence of Diet on Intestinal Ecology

A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Food Nutrition".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 May 2024 | Viewed by 6248

Special Issue Editors

Eastern Regional Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture, 600 E. Mermaid Lane, Wyndmoor, PA 19038, USA
Interests: surface modification; active packaging; biopolymer; controlled release; gut microbiota

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Guest Editor
Dairy and Functional Foods Research, USDA ARS Eastern Regional Research Center, Wyndmoor, PA, USA
Interests: microbiology; molecular biology; microbial ecology; gut microbiome; genetics; cellular biology; metabolomics; chemistry; bioactive compounds; functional foods

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Guest Editor
Department of Food & Hospitality Management, College of Nursing & Health Professions, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA, USA
Interests: microbiology; analytical chemistry; physical chemistry; dairy products
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Research continues to demonstrate the importance of gut microbiota in human health through the breakdown of nutritional components in the gastrointestinal tract and the release of bioactive metabolites that have a global effect on the human body. This makes the gut microbiota a unique therapeutic target, and it can be asserted that the gut microbiota lies at the intersection of human health and nutrition. The ability to exert healthy changes to the gut microbiota through the delivery of functional foods, probiotics, and prebiotics has been well studied. Scientists continue to develop novel food products that can benefit human health via the gut microbiota. Key to these achievements is a deep understanding of how each food, or food component, may affect the gut microbiota community structure and function, and correspondingly, how the gut microbiota may convert these foods, or food components, into metabolites that will benefit the host. Current research is focusing on defining these interactions. The more that is uncovered, the better equipped we will be to develop functional foods or bioactive ingredients that have the potential to improve human health, ameliorate disease symptoms, or prevent the development of disease on a global scale.

Dr. Linshu Liu
Dr. Jenni Ann Firrman
Dr. Michael Tunick
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • microbial ecology
  • gut microbiome and metabolome
  • digestion
  • probiotics
  • prebiotics
  • functional foods
  • bioactive compounds
  • multiomics

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

17 pages, 3474 KiB  
Article
Red Cabbage Modulates Composition and Co-Occurrence Networks of Gut Microbiota in a Rodent Diet-Induced Obesity Model
by Yanbei Wu, Mengmeng Xin, Quynhchi Pham, Yu Gao, Haiqiu Huang, Xiaojing Jiang, Robert W. Li, Liangli Yu, Yaguang Luo, Jing Wang and Thomas T. Y. Wang
Foods 2024, 13(1), 85; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods13010085 - 26 Dec 2023
Viewed by 919
Abstract
Red cabbage (RC), a cruciferous vegetable rich in various bioactive substances, can significantly reduce the risk factors of several non-communicable diseases, but the mechanism underlying the biological effects of RC remains unclear. Furthermore, mechanisms that operate through the regulation of gut microbiota also [...] Read more.
Red cabbage (RC), a cruciferous vegetable rich in various bioactive substances, can significantly reduce the risk factors of several non-communicable diseases, but the mechanism underlying the biological effects of RC remains unclear. Furthermore, mechanisms that operate through the regulation of gut microbiota also are not known. Given the relationships between diet, gut microbiota, and health, a diet-induced mice obesity model was used to elucidate the influence of RC on gut microbial composition and bacteria–bacteria interactions in mice. After 24 h of dietary intervention, a high-fat (HF) diet with the intake of RC led to increased Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes (F/B) ratios in the feces of mice. RC also reduced the relative abundance of Bifidobacteria, Lactobacillus, and Akkermansia muciniphila in mice fed a low-fat (LF) diet. After 8-weeks of dietary intervention, RC significantly changed the structure and the ecological network of the gut microbial community. Particularly, RC inhibited an HF-diet-induced increase in AF12 in mice, and this genus was positively correlated with body weight, low-density lipoprotein level, and fecal bile acid of mice. Unclassified Clostridiales, specifically increased via RC consumption, were also found to negatively correlate with hepatic free cholesterol levels in mice. Overall, our results demonstrated that RC modulating gut microbial composition and interactions are associated with the attenuation of HF-diet-induced body weight gain and altered cholesterol metabolism in mice. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Influence of Diet on Intestinal Ecology)
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17 pages, 3097 KiB  
Article
Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus Strain GG (LGG) Regulate Gut Microbial Metabolites, an In Vitro Study Using Three Mature Human Gut Microbial Cultures in a Simulator of Human Intestinal Microbial Ecosystem (SHIME)
by LinShu Liu, Adrienne B. Narrowe, Jenni A. Firrman, Karley K. Mahalak, Jamshed T. Bobokalonov, Johanna M. S. Lemons, Kyle Bittinger, Scott Daniel, Ceylan Tanes, Lisa Mattei, Elliot S. Friedman, Jason W. Soares, Masuko Kobori, Wei-Bin Zeng and Peggy M. Tomasula
Foods 2023, 12(11), 2105; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods12112105 - 24 May 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1617
Abstract
In the present research, we investigated changes in the gut metabolome that occurred in response to the administration of the Laticaseibacillus rhamnosus strain GG (LGG). The probiotics were added to the ascending colon region of mature microbial communities established in a human intestinal [...] Read more.
In the present research, we investigated changes in the gut metabolome that occurred in response to the administration of the Laticaseibacillus rhamnosus strain GG (LGG). The probiotics were added to the ascending colon region of mature microbial communities established in a human intestinal microbial ecosystem simulator. Shotgun metagenomic sequencing and metabolome analysis suggested that the changes in microbial community composition corresponded with changes to metabolic output, and we can infer linkages between some metabolites and microorganisms. The in vitro method permits a spatially-resolved view of metabolic transformations under human physiological conditions. By this method, we found that tryptophan and tyrosine were mainly produced in the ascending colon region, while their derivatives were detected in the transverse and descending regions, revealing sequential amino acid metabolic pathways along with the colonic tract. The addition of LGG appeared to promote the production of indole propionic acid, which is positively associated with human health. Furthermore, the microbial community responsible for the production of indole propionic acid may be broader than is currently known. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Influence of Diet on Intestinal Ecology)
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16 pages, 2528 KiB  
Article
Modulation of the Gut Microbiota Structure and Function by Two Structurally Different Lemon Pectins
by Jenni Firrman, Karley Mahalak, Jamshed Bobokalonov, LinShu Liu, Jung-Jin Lee, Kyle Bittinger, Lisa M. Mattei, Rizalina Gadaingan, Adrienne B. Narrowe and Johanna M. S. Lemons
Foods 2022, 11(23), 3877; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods11233877 - 01 Dec 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3182
Abstract
Pectins are plant polysaccharides consumed as part of a diet containing fruits and vegetables. Inside the gastrointestinal tract, pectin cannot be metabolized by the mammalian cells but is fermented by the gut microbiota in the colon with the subsequent release of end products [...] Read more.
Pectins are plant polysaccharides consumed as part of a diet containing fruits and vegetables. Inside the gastrointestinal tract, pectin cannot be metabolized by the mammalian cells but is fermented by the gut microbiota in the colon with the subsequent release of end products including short-chain fatty acids (SCFA). The prebiotic effects of pectin have been previously evaluated but reports are inconsistent, most likely due to differences in the pectin chemical structure which can vary by molecular weight (MW) and degree of esterification (DE). Here, the effects of two different MW lemon pectins with varying DEs on the gut microbiota of two donors were evaluated in vitro. The results demonstrated that low MW, high DE lemon pectin (LMW-HDE) altered community structure in a donor-dependent manner, whereas high MW, low DE lemon pectin (HMW-LDE) increased taxa within Lachnospiraceae in both donors. LMW-HDE and HMW-LDE lemon pectins both increased total SCFAs (1.49- and 1.46-fold, respectively) and increased acetic acid by 1.64-fold. Additionally, LMW-HDE lemon pectin led to an average 1.41-fold increase in butanoic acid. Together, these data provide valuable information linking chemical structure of pectin to its effect on the gut microbiota structure and function, which is important to understanding its prebiotic potential. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Influence of Diet on Intestinal Ecology)
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