Scientists have linked specific gut bacteria to reduced heart disease risk.
- Scientists have discovered that gut microbes play a significant role
in influencing cardiovascular disease.
- This builds upon previous research linking the gut microbiota to
various health issues like diabetes and obesity.
- Using data from the Framingham Heart Study, researchers identified
specific bacteria in the gut that can break down cholesterol, suggesting a
potential path to reducing heart disease risk.
- This research not only sheds light on the mechanisms by which gut bacteria
affect cholesterol levels but also opens the door for treatments aimed at
modifying the gut microbiota to improve heart health.
Alterations
in the gut
microbiota have been linked to
Researchers
from the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard in collaboration with Massachusetts
General Hospital have recently discovered that gut microbes could also
influence cardiovascular disease.
The new study, published in
The
researchers examined metabolites and microbial genomes from over 1,400
participants in the long-running
They found
that a type of bacteria called Oscillibacter absorbs and processes cholesterol
from its environment, noting that individuals with higher quantities of this
microbe in their intestines exhibited reduced cholesterol levels.
The team
also uncovered the process these bacteria likely employ to degrade cholesterol.
The
findings imply that future interventions targeting the microbiota in specific
manners may aid in lowering cholesterol levels in humans.
These
discoveries provide a foundation for more focused research on the impact of
microbiome alterations on health and disease.
Over the last
decade, researchers have found associations between the makeup of the gut
microbiota and aspects of cardiovascular disease, like
However,
the development of treatments targeting these links has been challenging,
mainly because of an incomplete understanding of the metabolic processes in the
gut.
Now,
researchers from the Broad Institute achieved a more thorough and detailed view
of how gut microbes affect metabolism.
They used
a powerful method called shotgun metagenomic sequencing to take a close look at
all the DNA of the microorganisms within a sample.
Along with
this, they applied a technique called metabolomics to measure the amounts of
hundreds of known and even thousands of yet-to-be-identified substances
produced by these organisms.
Oscillibacter in the gut may help lower cholesterol levels
The method revealed over 16,000 links between microbes and
metabolic characteristics, with one particularly notable finding: individuals
hosting several species of bacteria from the Oscillibacter genus exhibited lower cholesterol levels compared to those without
these bacteria.
Remarkably, Oscillibacter species
were found to be quite prevalent in the gut, averaging about one in every 100
bacteria.
To
understand how these microbes metabolize cholesterol, the researchers aimed to
identify the biochemical pathway involved, which involved cultivating the
organism in a laboratory setting.
Luckily,
the laboratory had devoted years to collecting bacteria from stool samples,
building a unique collection that includes Oscillibacter species.
After the
researchers successfully cultivated the bacteria in the lab, they used mass
spectrometry to pinpoint the likely byproducts created when the bacteria
process cholesterol.
This
helped them understand the methods these bacteria use to reduce cholesterol levels.
They discovered that the bacteria transform
cholesterol into substances that other bacteria can further break down and the
body can then eliminate.
By applying
machine learning, the team identified specific enzymes that might be
responsible for changing cholesterol into these substances.
In
addition, the researchers identified another type of gut bacteria, Eubacterium
coprostanoligenes, which also plays a role in lowering cholesterol.
This bacterium contains a gene known to be
involved in processing cholesterol. In their latest findings, the team observed
that Eubacterium may work together with Oscillibacter to further reduce cholesterol levels.
This
indicates that future research focusing on how different types of bacteria
interact could provide deeper insights into the complex ways the gut microbiota
influences human health.
The
researchers are aiming to understand how the complex world inside our guts
works by starting with one tiny organism or gene at a time.
They
believe this careful approach will help them figure out the system’s workings
and create targeted treatments that could directly target harmful microbes.
How
our gut flora affects heart disease risk
Two experts,
who were not involved in this research, spoke to Medical News Today about the study.
Cheng-Han Chen, MD, board certified
interventional cardiologist and medical director of the Structural Heart
Program at Memorial Care Saddleback Medical Center in Laguna Hills, CA, said,
“the gut microbiome is increasingly being understood as playing a major role in
human health, including cardiovascular health.”
“This
study utilized metagenomic and metabolomic techniques to identify and focus on
a specific species of gut bacteria (Oscillibacter) that appeared to be
associated with lower stool and blood cholesterol levels, likely due to their
cholesterol-metabolizing properties. As more research is performed to
understand the connections between the microbiome and cardiovascular disease,
we will be able to identify many more bacterial species that play a role in
regulating our cardiovascular risk factors.”— Dr. Cheng-Han Chen
Chen
pointed out that “as gut uptake and metabolism of fats and cholesterol affects
our blood cholesterol levels,
it is important for us to understand the mechanisms by which this occurs.”
“This
research can potentially lead to therapeutics that help our natural gut flora better maintain a favorable
blood cholesterol profile, which in turn may even lead to improved
cardiovascular health,” he explained.
Using probiotics to target cholesterol
Yu-Ming Ni, MD, board certified cardiologist
and lipidologist at MemorialCare Heart and Vascular Institute at Orange Coast
Medical Center in Fountain Valley, CA, agreed, saying, “there’s been a lot of
interest in the effect of the microbiome on general health.”
“We
coexist with trillions of organisms on our skin and in our intestinal and
genitourinary tract. These organisms play a critical role in our ability to
fight off external pathogens, in the metabolism of food, and in the health of
our immune system. Specifically, this study shows that there are bacterial
strains that may affect cholesterol exposure in the intestinal tract.”— Dr.
Yu-Ming Ni
“The discovery of the cholesterol
metabolizing properties of Oscillibacter bacteria is fascinating, and it
suggests the possibility of the use of this probiotic strain as a therapeutic
agent for treating high cholesterol,” Ni said.
However,
Ni also noted a few limitations of the study.
“Given
that this study was in vitro, it is too early to tell whether the cholesterol
effects of this organism in the human body can be replicated. More importantly,
we don’t know what other effects this organism may have on the human body, and
these other effects may be harmful,” he said.
Ni noted
that “further study is needed in actual patients to determine if this organism
can play a helpful role in reducing cholesterol uptake.”
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