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Metabolites
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The Role of Gut Microbes in Metabolism Regulation
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The Role of Gut Microbes in Metabolism Regulation

A special issue of Metabolites (ISSN 2218-1989). This special issue belongs to the section "Integrative Metabolomics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (28 February 2023) | Viewed by 8287

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Zhengrong Yuan

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Biological Sciences and Technology, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, China
Interests: bioinformatics; metabolomics; multi-omics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Haolin Zhang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Biological Sciences and Technology, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, China
Interests: gut microbiome and wildlife physiology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Zhihao Jia

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Cambridge-Suda Genomic Resource Center, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, China
Interests: adipocytes; lipid metabolism; protein modification; thermogenesis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Gut microbes, the trillions of microorganisms inhabiting the gastrointestinal tracts, modulate gut physiology and extraintestinal functions. Gut microbes could directly or indirectly affect the metabolism by interacting with metabolic pathways in the intestinal cells or adjusting the types and concentrations of metabolites circulating the body. Moreover, the symbiotic or pathogenic interactions between the host–gut microbiota highlight the positive and negative metabolic responses at the molecular, cellular, organic, physiological, and behavior levels. Emerging evidence has provided insights into the mechanism of how metabolites derived from microbiota affect host health and homeostasis. Due to the profound effect of gut microbes on the host’s metabolism, understanding the interaction between the host–gut microbes is key to solving overweight, obesity, and related metabolic disorders.

This Special Issue of Metabolites, “The Role of Gut Microbes in Metabolism Regulation”, will highlight the "metabolite-mediated" interactions between the gut microbiota and host’s metabolism as well as the resulting physiological effects. This Special Issue will not only include the results from basic research (cell, animal models, or wildlife), but is also open to results from epidemiological studies. In addition, new measurement methods, bioinformatical tools, and data analysis concepts are welcome.

Dr. Zhengrong Yuan
Dr. Haolin Zhang
Dr. Zhihao Jia
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Metabolites is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • gut microbes
  • metabolomics
  • energy homeostasis
  • metabolic disease
  • microbial regulation
  • host interactions
  • intestinal crosstalk

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 3129 KiB  
Article
2 Hydroxybutyric Acid-Producing Bacteria in Gut Microbiome and Fusobacterium nucleatum Regulates 2 Hydroxybutyric Acid Level In Vivo
by Fujian Qin, Jiankang Li, Tianxiao Mao, Shuo Feng, Jing Li and Maode Lai
Metabolites 2023, 13(3), 451; https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo13030451 - 20 Mar 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2750
Abstract
2-hydroxybutyric acid (2HB) serves as an important regulatory factor in a variety of diseases. The circulating level of 2HB in serum is significantly higher in multiple diseases, such as cancer and type 2 diabetes (T2D). However, there is currently no systematic study on [...] Read more.
2-hydroxybutyric acid (2HB) serves as an important regulatory factor in a variety of diseases. The circulating level of 2HB in serum is significantly higher in multiple diseases, such as cancer and type 2 diabetes (T2D). However, there is currently no systematic study on 2HB-producing bacteria that demonstrates whether gut bacteria contribute to the circulating 2HB pool. To address this question, we used BLASTP to reveal the taxonomic profiling of 2HB-producing bacteria in the human microbiome, which are mainly distributed in the phylum Proteobacteria and Firmicutes. In vitro experiments showed that most gut bacteria (21/32) have at least one path to produce 2HB, which includes Aspartic acid, methionine, threonine, and 2-aminobutyric acid. Particularly, Fusobacterium nucleatum has the strongest ability to synthesize 2HB, which is sufficient to alter colon 2HB concentration in mice. Nevertheless, neither antibiotic (ABX) nor Fusobacterium nucleatum gavage significantly affected mouse serum 2HB levels during the time course of this study. Taken together, our study presents the profiles of 2HB-producing bacteria and demonstrates that gut microbiota was a major contributor to 2HB concentration in the intestinal lumen but a relatively minor contributor to serum 2HB concentration. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Role of Gut Microbes in Metabolism Regulation)
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15 pages, 597 KiB  
Communication
Inter-Day Variation in the Fasting Plasma Lipopolysaccharide Concentration in the Morning Is Associated with Inter-Day Variation in Appetite in Japanese Males: A Short-Term Cohort Study
by Nobuo Fuke, Yusuke Ushida, Ikuo Sato and Hiroyuki Suganuma
Metabolites 2023, 13(3), 395; https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo13030395 - 08 Mar 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1651
Abstract
Injection of lipopolysaccharide (LPS), a product of gut bacteria, into the blood increases blood triglycerides and cortisol, an appetite-stimulating hormone. Meanwhile, small amounts of LPS derived from gut bacteria are thought to enter the bloodstream from the gut in daily basis. This study [...] Read more.
Injection of lipopolysaccharide (LPS), a product of gut bacteria, into the blood increases blood triglycerides and cortisol, an appetite-stimulating hormone. Meanwhile, small amounts of LPS derived from gut bacteria are thought to enter the bloodstream from the gut in daily basis. This study aimed to investigate the effect of LPS influx on appetite or lipid metabolism in humans in everyday life. We measured the fasting plasma LPS concentration before breakfast and the corresponding days’ appetite and fat-burning markers for 10 days in four Japanese males (28–31 years) and analyzed the correlation of their inter-day variation. The LPS concentration was negatively correlated with fullness, and positively correlated with the carbohydrate intake. Against our hypothesis, the LPS concentration was positively correlated with the fasting breath acetone concentration, a fat-burning marker. There was a positive correlation between the LPS concentration and fasting body mass index (BMI), but the inter-day variation in BMI was slight. The results suggest that the LPS influx in everyday life is at least associated with appetite in the day. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Role of Gut Microbes in Metabolism Regulation)
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12 pages, 2618 KiB  
Article
Seasonal Changes in the Structure and Function of Gut Microbiota in the Muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus)
by Fengcheng Song, Yishu Xu, Peng Peng, Hongxu Li, Ranxi Zheng, Haolin Zhang, Yingying Han, Qiang Weng and Zhengrong Yuan
Metabolites 2023, 13(2), 248; https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo13020248 - 09 Feb 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1431
Abstract
The gut microbiota plays a crucial role in the nutrition, metabolism, and immune function of the host animal. The muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus) is a typical seasonal breeding animal. The present study performed a metagenomic analysis of cecum contents from muskrats in [...] Read more.
The gut microbiota plays a crucial role in the nutrition, metabolism, and immune function of the host animal. The muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus) is a typical seasonal breeding animal. The present study performed a metagenomic analysis of cecum contents from muskrats in the breeding and non-breeding seasons. The results indicated that the breeding muskrats and non-breeding muskrats differed in gut microbiota structure and function. During the breeding season, the relative abundance of phylum Bacteroidetes, genus Prevotella, and genus Alistipes increased, while the relative abundance of phylum Firmicutes and phylum Actinobacteria decreased. The muskrat gut microbiota was enriched in the metabolism-related pathways, especially amino acid and vitamin metabolism, and genetically related metabolites in the breeding season. We presumed that the muskrat gut microbiota might seasonally change to secure reproductive activity and satisfy the metabolic demands of different seasons. This study could explore potential mechanisms by which gut microbiota affects reproduction. Moreover, this study may provide a new theoretical basis for the management of muskrat captive breeding. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Role of Gut Microbes in Metabolism Regulation)
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26 pages, 5226 KiB  
Article
Target Metabolites to Slow Down Progression of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis in Mice
by Destiny Ogbu, Yongguo Zhang, Katerina Claud, Yinglin Xia and Jun Sun
Metabolites 2022, 12(12), 1253; https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo12121253 - 12 Dec 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1735
Abstract
Microbial metabolites affect the neuron system and muscle cell functions. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a multifactorial neuromuscular disease. Our previous study has demonstrated elevated intestinal inflammation and dysfunction of the microbiome in patients with ALS and an ALS mouse model (human-SOD1G93A [...] Read more.
Microbial metabolites affect the neuron system and muscle cell functions. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a multifactorial neuromuscular disease. Our previous study has demonstrated elevated intestinal inflammation and dysfunction of the microbiome in patients with ALS and an ALS mouse model (human-SOD1G93A transgenic mice). However, the metabolites in ALS progression are unknown. Using an unbiased global metabolomic measurement and targeted measurement, we investigated the longitudinal changes of fecal metabolites in SOD1G93A mice over the course of 13 weeks. We further compared the changes of metabolites and inflammatory response in age-matched wild-type (WT) and SOD1G93A mice treated with the bacterial product butyrate. We found changes in carbohydrate levels, amino acid metabolism, and the formation of gamma-glutamyl amino acids. Shifts in several microbially contributed catabolites of aromatic amino acids agree with butyrate-induced changes in the composition of the gut microbiome. Declines in gamma-glutamyl amino acids in feces may stem from differential expression of gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT) in response to butyrate administration. Due to the signaling nature of amino acid-derived metabolites, these changes indicate changes in inflammation, e.g., histamine, and contribute to differences in systemic levels of neurotransmitters, e.g., γ-Aminobutyric acid (GABA) and glutamate. Butyrate treatment was able to restore some of the healthy metabolites in ALS mice. Moreover, microglia in the spinal cord were measured by IBA1 staining. Butyrate treatment significantly suppressed the IBA1 level in the SOD1G93A mice. Serum IL-17 and LPS were significantly reduced in the butyrate-treated SOD1G93A mice. We have demonstrated an inter-organ communications link among microbial metabolites, neuroactive metabolites from the gut, and inflammation in ALS progression. The study supports the potential to use metabolites as ALS hallmarks and for treatment. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Role of Gut Microbes in Metabolism Regulation)
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