Obese Adolescents With PCOS Have Altered Biodiversity and Relative Abundance in Gastrointestinal Microbiota

Abstract

Context Alterations in gut microbiota relate to the metabolic syndrome, but have not been examined in at-risk obese youth with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Objective Compare the composition and diversity of the gut microbiota and associations with metabolic and hormonal measures between 2 groups of female adolescents with equal obesity with or without PCOS. Design Prospective, case-control cross-sectional study. Setting Tertiary-care center. Participants A total of 58 obese female adolescents (n = 37 with PCOS; 16.1 ± 0.3 years of age; body mass index [BMI] 98.5th percentile) and (n = 21 without PCOS; 14.5 ± 0.4 years of age; BMI 98.7th percentile). Outcomes Bacterial diversity, percent relative abundance (%RA), and correlations with hormonal and metabolic measures. Results Participants with PCOS had decreased α-diversity compared with the non-PCOS group (Shannon diversity P = 0.045 and evenness P = 0.0052). β-diversity, reflecting overall microbial composition, differed between groups (P < 0.001). PCOS had higher %RA of phyla Actinobacteria (P = 0.027), lower Bacteroidetes (P = 0.004), and similar Firmicutes and Proteobacteria. PCOS had lower %RA of families Bacteroidaceae (P < 0.001) and Porphyromonadaceae (P = 0.024) and higher Streptococcaceae (P = 0.047). Lower bacterial α-diversity was strongly associated with higher testosterone concentrations. Several individual taxa correlated with testosterone and metabolic measures within PCOS and across the entire cohort. Receiver operative curve analysis showed 6 taxa for which the %RA related to PCOS status and lower Bacteroidaceae conferred a 4.4-fold likelihood ratio for PCOS. Conclusion Alterations in the gut microbiota exist in obese adolescents with PCOS versus obese adolescents without PCOS and these changes relate to markers of metabolic disease and testosterone. Further work is needed to determine if microbiota changes are reflective of, or influencing, hormonal metabolism.

Hepatic steatosis relates to gastrointestinal microbiota changes in obese girls with polycystic ovary syndrome

“…Upon return to study staff, samples were stored at -80°C until further processing. Bacterial profiles were determined by broad-range analysis of 16S rRNA genes following our previously described methods [ 24 , 31 ]. In brief, DNA was extracted from 50–100 mg of stool using the PowerFecal DNA isolation kit (QIAamp Powerfecal DNA kit (Qiagen INC, Hilden, Germany).…”

“…Alterations in four predominant gastrointestinal phyla ( Firmicutes , Bacteroidetes , Proteobacteria , Actinobacteria ) have been associated with high fat/low fiber diet, obesity, insulin resistance, T2D, PCOS and NAFLD [ 1 – 3 , 7 , 20 – 23 ]. We previously demonstrated that youth with PCOS have a unique microbiota profile relative to similarly obese girls without PCOS [ 24 ]. We thus sought to examine the gut microbiota composition in adolescent girls with combined obesity and PCOS, with or without HS, to determine if there is a unique microbiota profile associated with HS, beyond alterations seen with obesity and PCOS status.…”

New Opportunities for Endometrial Health by Modifying Uterine Microbial Composition: Present or Future?

“…It was shown on broad-spectrum antibiotics-treated endometriosis mice that the FMT from mice with endometriosis resumed the growth of endometriotic lesions suggesting that the gut microbiota could promote endometriosis progression [131]. In humans, differences in gut microbial composition between healthy women and women with endometriosis [152] and polycystic ovary syndrome were reported [153][154][155][156][157][158].…”

Metagenome datasets from women with polycystic ovary syndrome from Irkutsk, Eastern Siberia, Russia

“…Direct interactions of the gut microbiome (GM) and PCOS have been shown in animal model studies [2] . In contrast, the peculiarities of GM associated with PCOS have been studied for female adolescents and women of reproductive years [ 2 , 3 ]. In recent years, pronounced dysbiosis of gut microbial communities has been shown in metabolic diseases (obesity and insulin resistance) associated with PCOS [ 4 , 5 ].…”

“…Although the search for correlations between the GM and metabolic diseases has become a hot point for recent research, the geography of the studies on PCOS is very narrow and included mainly Chinese studies. A few studies have been carried out in the USA, Austria, and Spain [2] , [3] , [4] , [5] , [6] , [7] , [8] .…”