Body Mass Index Differences in the Gut Microbiota Are Gender Specific

Abstract

Background: The gut microbiota is increasingly recognized as playing an important role in the development of obesity, but the influence of gender remains elusive. Using a large cohort of Chinese adults, our study aimed to identify differences in gut microbiota as a function of body mass index (BMI) and investigate gender specific features within these differences.Methods: Five hundred fifty-one participants were categorized as underweight, normal, overweight, or obese, based on their BMI. Fecal microbiome composition was profiled via 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Generalized linear model (GLM), BugBase, PICRUSt, and SPIEC-EASI were employed to assess the variabilities in richness, diversity, structure, organism-level microbiome phenotypes, molecular functions, and ecological networks of the bacterial community that associated with BMI and sex.Results: The bacterial community of the underweight group exhibited significantly higher alpha diversity than other BMI groups. When stratified by gender, the pattern of alpha diversity across BMI was maintained in females, but no significant difference in alpha diversity was detected among the BMI groups of males. An enrichment of Fusobacteria was observed in the fecal microbiota of obese males, while obese females demonstrated an increased relative abundance of Actinobacteria. Analysis of microbial community-level phenotypes revealed that underweight males tend to have more anaerobic and less facultatively anaerobic bacteria, indicating a reduced resistance to oxidative stress. Functionally, butyrate-acetoacetate CoA-transferase was enriched in obese individuals, which might favor energy accumulation. PhoH-like ATPase was found to be increased in male obese subjects, indicating a propensity to harvest energy. The microbial ecological network of the obese group contained more antagonistic microbial interactions as well as high-degree nodes.Conclusion: Using a large Chinese cohort, we demonstrated BMI-associated differences in gut microbiota composition, functions, and ecological networks, which were influenced by gender. Results in this area have shown variability across several independent studies, suggesting that further investigation is needed to understand the role of the microbiota in modulating host energy harvest and storage, and the impact of sex on these functions.

Gut Microbiome Biomarkers in Adolescent Obesity: a Regional Study

“…Here we report BMI-associated patterns in the adolescent gut microbiome composition and functions. The imbalance of Bacteroidetes to Firmicutes ratio has been reported in numerous studies (Duncan et al, 2008; Jumpertz et al 2011; Schwiertz et al 2011), and we previously reported that Bacteroidetes was enriched in obese adults comparing to lean subjects (Gao et al 2018). In the present data, no difference in the relative abundances of these two phyla upon comparison of obese and normal-weight adolescents, which is in agreement with findings of (Duncan et al 2008; Jumpertz et al 2011).…”

“…With the gut microbiota sequencing data of 516 Chinese adult, we previously found that BMI differences in the gut microbiome composition are gender specific (Gao et al 2018). Since age has also been reported as a confounding factor influencing the gut microbiome, and it is uncertain whether the gender differences discovered in adult people also exist in adolescents.…”

“…By characterizing the gut microbiota of 7,009 individuals from 14 districts within the Guangdong province of China, He et al showed that host location is the strongest explanatory factor to the microbiota variations (He et al 2018). Our previous study demonstrated BMI differences in the gut microbiota are gender specific (Gao et al 2018). Thus, the region, age and gender should be considered when choosing controls to compare the gut microbiome of disease cases.…”

Disease severity and proton pump inhibitor use impact strongest on faecal microbiome composition in liver cirrhosis

“…Interestingly, gender did not impact on microbiome composition in our study. In studies in obese individuals, gender seems to cause taxonomic differences, whereas data on changes on alpha and beta diversity are still conflicting . In liver cirrhosis, gender differences have not been associated with changes in beta diversity so far.…”

“…In studies in obese individuals, gender seems to cause taxonomic differences, whereas data on changes on alpha and beta diversity are still conflicting. 73,74 In liver cirrhosis, gender differences have not been associated with changes in beta diversity so far. The male predominance in liver cirrhosis may be a reason for difficulties to detect consistent gender differences.…”