Intermittent hypoxia alters gut microbiota diversity in a mouse model of sleep apnoea

Abstract

We assessed whether intermittent hypoxia, which emulates one of the hallmarks of obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA), leads to altered faecal microbiome in a murine model.In vivo partial pressure of oxygen was measured in colonic faeces during intermittent hypoxia in four anesthetised mice. 10 mice were subjected to a pattern of chronic intermittent hypoxia (20 s at 5% O 2 and 40 s at room air for 6 h·day −1 ) for 6 weeks and 10 mice served as normoxic controls. Faecal samples were obtained and microbiome composition was determined by 16S rRNA pyrosequencing and bioinformatic analysis by Quantitative Insights into Microbial Ecology.Intermittent hypoxia exposures translated into hypoxia/re-oxygenation patterns in the faeces proximal to the bowel epithelium (<200 μm). A significant effect of intermittent hypoxia on global microbial community structure was found. Intermittent hypoxia increased the α-diversity (Shannon index, p<0.05) and induced a change in the gut microbiota (ANOSIM analysis of β-diversity, p<0.05). Specifically, intermittent hypoxia-exposed mice showed a higher abundance of Firmicutes and a smaller abundance of Bacteroidetes and Proteobacteria phyla than controls.Faecal microbiota composition and diversity are altered as a result of intermittent hypoxia realistically mimicking OSA, suggesting the possibility that physiological interplays between host and gut microbiota could be deregulated in OSA. @ERSpublications Faecal microbiota composition and diversity are altered due to intermittent hypoxia mimicking OSA in a murine model

Effects of CPAP therapy withdrawal on exhaled breath pattern in obstructive sleep apnoea

“…Similarly, gut microbiota metabolites have been reported to be altered in sleep-deprived humans 35. Along the same lines, intermittent hypoxia has been found to alter gut microbiota diversity in OSA mice models 36. Moreover, we also found a family of phenols, including cresol, which is a unique bacterial metabolite from protein fermentation 37.…”

Effects of continuous positive airway pressure on energy balance regulation: a systematic review

“…For example, recent work suggests an effect of CPAP on circulating levels of glucagon-like protein-1, a satiety hormone [104]. Interestingly, an animal model of OSA found that induced intermittent hypoxia in mice caused alterations in microbiota composition and diversity [105], suggesting the testing of CPAP on this outcome. Based on findings that sleep restriction can affect brain regions involved in motivation and reward in the context of food stimuli [106], new work should also extend beyond the hormonal/homeostatic control of energy intake, to determine how CPAP affects the hedonic and cognitive control of food intake in OSA patients, using functional brain imaging.…”

Obesity and Altered Sleep: A Pathway to Metabolic Derangements in Children?

“…Under such circumstances, altered gut microbiota could lead to obesity and metabolic dysfunction [120-122]. Similarly, gut microbiota could be perturbed by the presence of OSA and trigger inflammation [123]. LPS-binding protein (LBP) serves as a surrogate marker of underlying low-grade endotoxemia by LPS from the gut.…”