Intestinal Microbiota Is Influenced by Gender and Body Mass Index

Abstract

Intestinal microbiota changes are associated with the development of obesity. However, studies in humans have generated conflicting results due to high inter-individual heterogeneity in terms of diet, age, and hormonal factors, and the largely unexplored influence of gender. In this work, we aimed to identify differential gut microbiota signatures associated with obesity, as a function of gender and changes in body mass index (BMI). Differences in the bacterial community structure were analyzed by 16S sequencing in 39 men and 36 post-menopausal women, who had similar dietary background, matched by age and stratified according to the BMI. We observed that the abundance of the Bacteroides genus was lower in men than in women (P<0.001, Q = 0.002) when BMI was > 33. In fact, the abundance of this genus decreased in men with an increase in BMI (P<0.001, Q<0.001). However, in women, it remained unchanged within the different ranges of BMI. We observed a higher presence of Veillonella (84.6% vs. 47.2%; X2 test P = 0.001, Q = 0.019) and Methanobrevibacter genera (84.6% vs. 47.2%; X2 test P = 0.002, Q = 0.026) in fecal samples in men compared to women. We also observed that the abundance of Bilophila was lower in men compared to women regardless of BMI (P = 0.002, Q = 0.041). Additionally, after correcting for age and sex, 66 bacterial taxa at the genus level were found to be associated with BMI and plasma lipids. Microbiota explained at P = 0.001, 31.17% variation in BMI, 29.04% in triglycerides, 33.70% in high-density lipoproteins, 46.86% in low-density lipoproteins, and 28.55% in total cholesterol. Our results suggest that gut microbiota may differ between men and women, and that these differences may be influenced by the grade of obesity. The divergence in gut microbiota observed between men and women might have a dominant role in the definition of gender differences in the prevalence of metabolic and intestinal inflammatory diseases.

The microgenderome revealed: sex differences in bidirectional interactions between the microbiota, hormones, immunity and disease susceptibility

“…In contrast, higher relative abundance of Escherichia [64] and Veillonella genera and lower relative abundance of the Bilophila genus have all been described in males [63]. However, another study showed increased Bacteroides in males compared to females [59].…”

The interaction between invariant Natural Killer T cells and the mucosal microbiota

“…Host-derived variables, like gender and genetics, are known to impact the microbiota. 102,103 The list is longer for environmental variables, inducing the diet (e.g. fibre content, antibiotics/probiotics), housing (e.g.…”

Presencia de Escherichia coli intracelular en mucosa intestinal de pacientes con Enfermedad Inflamatoria Intestinal y su asociación con características clínicas y el uso de corticosteroides

“…Sin embargo, se debe reconocer que el género puede afectar la composición de la microbiota, ya que diferencias entre hombres y mujeres han sido descritas 23,24 . Asimismo, algunos trabajos sugieren que el género puede tener una influencia en la microbiota intestinal en distintos patologías, tales como síndrome de intestino irritable y EII 25,26 .…”