Alteration of Community Metabolism by Prebiotics and Medicinal Herbs
Authors
Christine Peterson
Center of Excellence for Research and Training in Integrative Health, Department of Family Medicine, School of Medicine, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
Josué Pérez-Santiago
Division of Cancer Biology, University of Puerto Rico Comprehensive Cancer Center, San Juan, PR 00927, USA
Stanislav Iablokov
Phenobiome Inc., Palm Springs, CA 92262, USA
Dmitry Rodionov
Bioinformatics and Structural Biology Program, Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
Scott Peterson
Tumor Microenvironment and Cancer Immunology Program, Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
Keywords:
glycosyl hydrolases, glycan, gut microbiota, short-chain fatty acid, community metabolism, medicinal herb, prebiotic, prebiotics, genome-wide metabolic reconstruction
Abstract
Several studies have examined the impact of prebiotics on gut microbiota and associated changes in host physiology. Here, we used the in vitro cultivation of human fecal samples stimulated with a series of chemically related prebiotics and medicinal herbs commonly used in Ayurvedic medicine, followed by 16S rRNA sequencing. We applied a genome-wide metabolic reconstruction of enumerated communities to compare and contrast the structural and functional impact of prebiotics and medicinal herbs. In doings so, we examined the relationships between discrete variations in sugar composition and sugar linkages associated with each prebiotic to drive changes in microbiota composition. The restructuring of microbial communities with glycan substrates alters community metabolism and its potential impact on host physiology. We analyzed sugar fermentation pathways and products predicted to be formed and prebiotic-induced changes in vitamin and amino acid biosynthesis and degradation. These results highlight the utility of combining a genome-wide metabolic reconstruction methodology with 16S rRNA sequence-based community profiles to provide insights pertaining to community metabolism. This process also provides a rational means for prioritizing in vivo analysis of prebiotics and medicinal herbs in vivo to test hypotheses related to therapeutic potential in specific diseases of interest.
Keywords: glycosyl hydrolases, glycan, gut microbiota, short-chain fatty acid, community metabolism, medicinal herb, prebiotic, prebiotics, genome-wide metabolic reconstruction
Author Biography
Josué Pérez-Santiago, Division of Cancer Biology, University of Puerto Rico Comprehensive Cancer Center, San Juan, PR 00927, USA
School of Dental Medicine, Office of Research, University of Puerto Rico Medical Sciences Campus, San Juan, PR 00921, USA
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