Role of gut microbiota in the immunopathology of atherosclerosis: Focus on immune cells

Abstract

Gut microbiota (GM) plays important roles in multiple organ function, homeostasis and several diseases. More recently, increasing evidences have suggested that the compositional and functional alterations of GM play a crucial role in the accumulation of foam cells and the formation of atherosclerotic plaque in atherosclerosis. In particular, the effects of bacterial components and metabolites on innate and adaptive immune cells have been explored as the underlying mechanisms. Understanding the effects of GM and metabolites on immunoregulation is important for clinical therapy for atherosclerosis. Herein, we summarize the potential role of the GM (such as bacterial components lipopolysaccharide and peptidoglycan) and GM‐derived metabolites (such as short‐chain fatty acids, trimethylamine N‐oxide and bile acids) in the immunopathology of atherosclerosis. Based on that, we further discuss the anti‐atherosclerotic effects of GM‐directed dietary bioactive factors such as dietary fibres, dietary polyphenols and probiotics. Because of drug‐induced adverse events in anti‐inflammatory therapies, personalized dietary interventions would be potential therapies for atherosclerosis, and the interactions between GM‐derived products and immune cells should be studied further.

Gut Microbiota and Vascular Diseases: An Update

“…Trimethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO), a metabolite produced from dietary precursors in the liver by trimethylamine (TMA) oxidization, has been explored in previous studies [13,14]. Extensive clinical and animal studies have concluded that TMAO promotes atherosclerosis through multiple mechanisms, such as cholesterol accumulation, inflammatory cell recruitment, and endothelial dysfunction [3,[13][14][15]. Elevated TMAO levels predict greater incidence of adverse events in patients with CAD and PAD [16].…”

“…Accumulating evidence indicates crosstalk between the gut microbiota and vascular dysfunction, thus extending the scope of therapy for atherosclerosis, aneurysm, and VC (Table 1) [73,74]. Dietary modulation is a viable and acceptable means of decreasing chronic vascular inflammation [3,15]. Specifically, the abovementioned natural products show powerful anti-inflammatory effects with minimal adverse effects [25].…”

Nutraceuticals in Personalized and Precision Medicine – a preliminary scoping review indicates efficacy for disease treatment, general wellbeing, and defense against Covid-19

“…Of these, 18 are review articles covering a wide range of disease and non-disease states, e.g., cancer [23][24][25], cardiovascular disease (CVD) [26], autism [19], type 2 diabetes [27]. Notably, five review papers focussed on the microbiome [25,[28][29][30][31]. While it is not possible to synthesize the findings of all 30 papers, we collate them in Table 3, and offer remarks on a select few that highlight a true personalized medicine or precision medicine approach to nutraceutical use.…”