Owning a Pet Is Associated with Changes in the Composition of Gut Microbiota and Could Influence the Risk of Metabolic Disorders in Humans

Abstract

Pet ownership positively influences clinical outcomes in cardiovascular prevention. Additionally, cardiovascular disease (CVD) has been previously linked to microbiota dysbiosis. We evaluated the influence of owning a pet and its relationship with the intestinal microbiota. We analyzed the gut microbiota from 162 coronary patients from the CORDIOPREV study (NCT00924937) according to whether they owned pets (n = 83) or not (n = 79). The pet-owner group was further divided according to whether they owned dogs only (n = 28) or not (n = 55). A 7-item pet-owners test score was used. Patients who owned pets had less risk of metabolic syndrome (MetS) (OR = 0.462) and obesity (OR = 0.519) and were younger (p < 0.001) than patients who did not own pets. Additionally, patients who owned dogs had less risk of MetS (OR = 0.378) and obesity (OR = 0.418) and were younger (p < 0.001) than patients who did not own pets. A preponderance of the genera Serratia and Coprococcus was found in the group of owners, while the genera Ruminococcus, an unknown genus of Enterobacteriaceae and Anaerotruncus were preponderant in the group of non-owners. In patients who owned dogs, Methanobrevibacter and two more genera, Coprococcus and Oscillospira, were more common. Our study suggests that the prevalence of MetS and obesity in CVD patients is lower in pet owners, and that pet ownership could be a protective factor against MetS through the shaping of the gut microbiota. Thus, owning a pet could be considered as a protective factor against cardiometabolic diseases.

Could Gut Microbiota Composition Be a Useful Indicator of a Long-Term Dietary Pattern?

“…The association between a family history of dementia, which is commonly associated with aging, and gut microbiota has not been described in studies, whereas patients with Alzheimer's disease spectrum, including mild cognitive impairment, have reduced gut microbiota diversity and altered gut microbiota composition [69]. Regarding pets, numerous studies have already observed that early-life exposure to household pets [70] and current pet ownership are associated with changes in the human gut microbiota [71][72][73]. C2 had the most flexible work schedule, and only the minority of them were sleeping more on weekends, whereas in C3, the vast majority of subjects were working one shift, which is the most common work schedule in our society.…”

Comparative analysis based on shared amplicon sequence variants reveals that cohabitation influences gut microbiota sharing between humans and dogs

“…Pets sharing living environments with humans have been reported to be a considerable factor influencing the taxonomic composition and phylogenetic diversity of the human gut and skin microbiomes via direct or indirect microbial transfer (8–14). Contact between humans and pets alters the composition of gut bacteria and potentially reduces the risk of allergic diseases in infants (9,15,16), and metabolic syndromes (17). The dog is regarded as the first domesticated animal (18).…”