Gut microbiota metabolization of dietary choline may promote atherosclerosis through trimethylamine (TMA), which is rapidly absorbed and converted in the liver to proatherogenic trimethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO). The aim of this study was to verify whether TMAO urinary levels may be associated with the fecal relative abundance of specific bacterial taxa and the bacterial choline TMA-lyase gene cutC. The analysis of sequences available in GenBank grouped the cutC gene into two main clusters, cut-Dd and cut-Kp. A quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) protocol was developed to quantify cutC and was used with DNA isolated from three fecal samples collected weekly over the course of three consecutive weeks from 16 healthy adults. The same DNA was used for 16S rRNA gene profiling. Concomitantly, urine was used to quantify TMAO by ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS). All samples were positive for cutC and TMAO. Correlation analysis showed that the cut-Kp gene cluster was significantly associated with Enterobacteriaceae. Linear mixed models revealed that urinary TMAO levels may be predicted by fecal cut-Kp and by 23 operational taxonomic units (OTUs). Most of the OTUs significantly associated with TMAO were also significantly associated with cut-Kp, confirming the possible relationship between these two factors. In conclusion, this preliminary method-development study suggests the existence of a relationship between TMAO excreted in urine, specific fecal bacterial OTUs, and a cutC subgroup ascribable to the choline-TMA conversion enzymes of Enterobacteriaceae.

Within a project aimed to reintroduce non-drug hemp cultivars in the Italian Po valley, for fibre but also high added-value nutraceutical production, investigation on locally grown plants has been performed, in order to assess their oil and metabolic content. This study provides useful information regarding three different hemp cultivars, from two sites, in view of their potential industrial application. The oil was characterised by a high unsaturated/saturated fatty acid ratio and by an almost perfect balance of ω-3 and ω-6 fatty acids, as requested for healthy foods. The alcoholic extracts, for which a high content of amino acids and phenolic compounds has been highlighted, could provide dietary supplements to help in preventing oxidative stress. By investigating the Carmagnola cultivar, six known and four new lignanamides have been identified, confirming and assessing the general metabolic pattern in the seeds of these locally grown plants.

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