Antarctic marine food webs are expected to be significantly impacted by future climate change. In particular, the recent rapid regional warming in the West Antarctic Peninsula has, and will continue to have, a negative impact on endemic marine biodiversity. However, despite the growing recognition of the role microbial symbionts play in mediating responses to environmental change, microbiome characterisation has been conducted for only a small fraction of the marine invertebrates in the Southern Ocean. Our study examined the effects of feeding guild, seasonality, and experimental warming (6 months at + 2 °C) on the gut microbiome of six species of near-shore marine Antarctic echinoderms sampled from waters off Rothera Research Station, Antarctica. Our study used 16 S rRNA amplicon sequencing of the V3-V4 region, with analyses including measurements of alpha and beta-diversity alongside co-occurrence network analyses. Of the six invertebrate species sampled in winter, peak species diversity values in gut microbiomes were observed in the omnivores, Ophionotus victoriae and Sterechinus neumayeri, with lower values in the scavenger/predator, Odontaster validus, and the suspension feeders, Cucumaria georgiana, Echinopsolus charcoti, and Heterocucumis steineni. In the seasonal experiment, H. steineni bacterial gut species diversity doubled from winter to early summer yet decreased by a similar magnitude during the same period in O. victoriae. Despite these opposing diversity trends, both species displayed similar increases in the relative abundances of Bacteroidota and Bacillota in winter and early summer in their gut microbiomes. Bacterial diversity in the gut microbiome of the sea cucumbers E. charcoti and H. steineni, was not impacted by six-months at + 2 ˚C above ambient, although C. georgiana displayed a decrease in observed ASVs following this treatment. These results suggest a strong influence of feeding guild and seasonality on the gut microbiomes of these invertebrates. There appeared to be little effect of warming (+ 2 °C) on the taxonomic composition of the gut microbiomes of the three holothurians. This highlights the need to examine the functional significance of experimental warming treatments using metabolomics and transcriptomics alongside microbial species diversity analyses to understand whether gut microbiomes can aid resilience under future climate change.
The colonisation of the human gut microbiome commences at birth and continues to evolve throughout the lifespan. A balanced symbiotic relationship between the host and gut microbiome is essential for maintaining overall health. This two-part Series presents a comprehensive overview of the gut microbiome across temporal and spatial dimensions, considering diurnal, seasonal, and lifespan variations while covering the entire gastrointestinal tract. We also discuss the extrinsic and intrinsic factors that shape the microbial ecosystem and affect host homoeostasis, health, and disease susceptibility. In this first Series paper, we summarise current knowledge on the microbial succession and evolutionary trajectory of the gut microbiome from neonates to adults aged 100 years and older, subsequently focusing on diurnal rhythms and seasonal patterns. We then discuss how these temporal variations in the gut microbiome are determined and how they contribute to beneficial or detrimental health outcomes in the host. Overall, elucidating the multiscale temporal dynamics of the human gut microbiome will open crucial opportunities to expand knowledge of host-microbiome interactions and their biological and clinical implications.
The human gut microbiome shows dynamic variation throughout the lifespan and remarkable spatial organisation within the gastrointestinal tract. Complementing the focus of the first paper of this Series on the human microbiome dynamics and health, which focused on the temporal dynamics of the human gut microbiome, this second Series paper explores its biogeographical signatures, which often reflect distinct physiological niches in gastrointestinal tract regions. The spatial architecture of the gut microbiome is shaped by various factors and has important clinical implications for host homoeostasis, health, and disease. In this Series paper, we discuss current knowledge on the microbial biogeography along the gastrointestinal tract, the factors governing these spatial patterns, and their functional consequences for the host. We further focus on host-microbe interactions mediated by microbial metabolites and their impact on host health. Finally, we summarise the methodological advances that are enabling in-situ high-resolution spatial mapping of the gut microbiome as crucial tools for unravelling the detailed mechanisms of host-microbiome crosstalk. Overall, understanding the principles that govern the spatial ecology of the gut microbiome can inform the development of novel therapies designed to precisely manipulate microbial niches and restore homoeostasis along the gastrointestinal tract, thereby improving human health.
The aim of this study is to describe the development and implementation of a novel Readiness to Change Nutritional Habits (RCNH) survey for use along with dietary assessment and gut microbiome profiling in a proof-of-concept study in individuals with early Alzheimer's disease dementia (eAD), mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and healthy controls (HC). Overall, this methods paper contributes to emerging research examining how behavioural readiness for change can be integrated with dietary assessment and gut microbiome profiling to better understand the microbiome's influence on the nervous system. This is a sub-study embedded within a multi-prong proof-of-concept, observational study mapping the gut microbiome in 45 participants (15 HC, 15 MCI, 15 eAD) at baseline, 3 months, and 6 months. The parent study collects gut microbiome profiles, dietary patterns, and cognitive assessments. The sub-study develops and administers the 32-item RCNH survey to characterize participants' readiness to adopt nutritional change. This manuscript reports the RCNH survey, its development process, the sub-study protocol including data collection procedures, and planned exploratory analyses. This protocol presents a novel intervention to assess the gut microbiome, individual dietary patterns, and readiness to make lifestyle changes related to diet.
Domestication represents one of the largest biological shifts of life on Earth, and for many animal species, behavioral selection is thought to facilitate early stages of the process. The gut microbiome of animals can respond to environmental changes and have diverse and powerful effects on host behavior. As such, we hypothesize that selection for tame behavior during early domestication, may have indirectly selected on certain gut microbiota that contribute to the behavioral plasticity necessary to adapt to the new social environment. Here, we explore the gut microbiome of foxes from the tame and aggressive strains of the "Russian-Farm-Fox-Experiment". Microbiota profiles reveal a significant depletion of bacteria in the tame fox population that have been associated with aggressive and fear-related behaviors in other mammals. Our metagenomic survey allows for the reconstruction of microbial pathways enriched in the gut of tame foxes, such as glutamate degradation, which converge with host genetic and physiological signals, revealing a potential role of functional host-microbiota interactions that could influence behaviors associated with domestication. Overall, by characterizing how compositional and functional potential of the gut microbiota and host behaviors co-vary during early animal domestication, we provide further insight into our mechanistic understanding of this adaptive, eco-evolutionary process.
Human gut microbes metabolize food and host secretions, consuming and producing small molecules that are important to health and homeostasis. Here, we present an atlas of diet- and microbiome-derived metabolites in the human gut, constructed from a controlled feeding experiment of adults on omnivore and enteral nutrition diets. By comparing metabolite concentration before and after microbiome depletion with antibiotics and polyethylene glycol, we identified 2856 microbial products decreasing and 1057 microbial substrates increasing in concentration after depletion. We also identified 2496 diet-derived metabolites by comparing diet groups when the microbiome was depleted. Seven days after antibiotics, 98% of gut metabolites recovered to pre-antibiotic levels in the omnivore group. In plasma samples, only 93 microbiome-derived metabolites varied with gut microbiome depletion, indicating a limited impact on circulating metabolites. To demonstrate our metabolite atlas, we annotated metabolites associated with inflammatory bowel disease and identified the microbiome-derived metabolites altered in gut dysbiosis. We identified metabolites associated with the metabolism of the human gut microbiome, mapping its overall metabolic potential. Furthermore, we measured the rate at which metabolites were recovered following gut microbiome disruption.
Among dozens of microbial DNA modifications regulating gene expression and host defense, phosphorothioation (PT) is the only known backbone modification, with sulfur inserted at a non-bridging oxygen by dnd and ssp gene families. Here we explored the distribution of PT genes in 13,663 human gut microbiome genomes, finding that 6.3% possessed dnd or ssp genes predominantly in Bacillota, Bacteroidota, and Pseudomonadota. This analysis revealed several previously undescribed PT synthesis systems, including type 4 Bacteriophage Exclusion (BREX) type 4 brx genes, which we genetically validated in Bacteroides salyersiae. Mass spectrometric analysis of DNA from 226 gut microbiome isolates possessing dnd, ssp, and brx genes revealed 8 PT dinucleotide settings confirmed in 10 consensus sequences by PT-specific DNA sequencing. Genomic analysis showed PT enrichment in rRNA genes and depletion at gene boundaries. These results illustrate the power of the microbiome for discovering prokaryotic epigenetics and the widespread distribution of oxidation-sensitive PTs in gut microbes.
Imidazole propionate (ImP), a microbial metabolite of histidine, may impair glucose metabolism, but its relevance to coronary heart disease (CHD) risk and potential diet-microbiota regulations remain unclear. We aimed to examine prospective associations of plasma ImP levels and histidine intake with CHD risk, to identify ImP-predicting gut microbes, and to investigate diet-microbiome interactions influencing ImP levels. Associations of ImP and histidine with CHD risk were evaluated using Cox models in 7,432 participants from Nurses' Health Study (NHS), NHSII, and Health Professionals Follow-up Study. Microbiome-diet interactions influencing ImP levels were assessed using fecal metagenome and 7-day diet record data in 296 men from the Men's Lifestyle Validation Study, with replication in the Mind-Body Study. Higher plasma ImP was associated with increased CHD risk (HR comparing extreme quintiles = 1.82; 95%CI = 1.17-2.81; p-trend = 0.002), while histidine intake showed a non-significant inverse association. Although histidine intake was not associated with ImP levels, the intake of fiber, especially pectin, emerged as a key negative predictor. We identified 17 distinct ImP-predicting species, including Clostridium and Blautia species. A parametric ImP-microbial score was constructed based on these species to represent the microbial capacity of producing ImP. Further functional characterization uncovered that the microbial urocanate reductase gene urdA was also associated with cardiovascular risk markers. No significant interaction was observed between histidine intake and the microbial score on ImP levels, but ImP levels increased with higher histidine intake and higher microbial score only under low pectin intake (p for 3-way interaction = 0.01). Similar interactions were seen for total fiber (p = 0.09), soluble fiber (p = 0.09), and insoluble fiber (p = 0.11), without statistical significance. ImP, but not its dietary precursor histidine, was associated with a higher CHD risk. The gut microbial metabolism of ImP appeared context-dependent, with ImP production from histidine associated with a higher ImP-producing microbial capacity and lower fiber intake. These findings highlight the potential role of dietary fiber and gut microbiome in modulating diet-health associations related to ImP metabolism.
Platelets are classically recognised for their role in haemostasis and thrombosis. They are now increasingly recognised as modulators of the immune system, referred to as immunothrombosis, and are thought to be closely associated with the gut microbiome. The gut microbiome shapes platelet phenotype through receptor-mediated sensing of microbial ligands and circulating metabolite-driven priming. Dysbiosis and barrier disruption increase systemic exposure to microbial-associated molecular patterns (MAMPs) which, in turn, engage platelet and vascular pattern-recognition receptors. Prothrombotic metabolites such as trimethylamine N-oxide has also been shown to modulate platelet activation by amplifying calcium-dependent activation and downstream inflammatory crosstalk. Other metabolites, such as phenylacetylglutamine, have been shown to increase platelet activation through adrenergic receptor-mediated pathways. In contrast, short-chain fatty acids may reduce this thromboinflammatory platelet phenotypes through anti-inflammatory signalling and potential effects on megakaryopoiesis and platelet reactivity. Therapeutic options that target these pathways between platelets and the microbiota have been explored. Examples include dietary modifications and microbiome-based interventions. Yet, whilst promising, significant gaps remain in understanding the long-term impacts of these strategies on platelet behaviour and overall disease outcomes.
Large public datasets of the human microbiome now exist but combining them for large-scale analysis is difficult due to a lack of standardization. We developed curatedMetagenomicData (cMD) 3, a uniformly processed collection of over 22,000 human microbiome samples with manually curated metadata from 94 studies and 42 countries. This large and diverse resource allows for meta-analysis of the links between microbes and human health. Through meta-analysis, we identified hundreds of microbial species and thousands of microbial functions significantly associated with a person's sex, age, body mass index, and disease status, and catalog these as references. We developed an "oral enrichment score" (OES) based on the relative abundance of bacteria typically found in the oral cavity and not in the gut. Higher OES in the gut is a consistent feature in individuals with disease, suggesting that the relative abundance of oral bacteria in the gut is a simple and quantifiable signal of altered microbiome health. These analyses identify modest but widely shared patterns in human microbiomes, serving as a reproducible and readily updatable reference.
Decreased gut microbial diversity is associated with greater depression symptoms in adults. Findings on the relationship between the gut microbiome and depression or anxiety in children and adolescents are mixed, and evidence syntheses are needed. Seven databases were searched for peer-reviewed studies on the gut microbiome and internalizing symptoms, depression, or anxiety, in children and adolescents (<19 years). Random-effects meta-analyses of alpha diversity indices were performed. Youth advisors validated the research findings' relevance to their experiences and contributed to dissemination planning. Eight studies were included, representing 2,865 participants (mean age = 11.4 years, SD = 4.3). Study designs were cross-sectional (n = 5), longitudinal (n = 2), and interventional (n = 1). No association was found between alpha or beta diversity and internalizing problems, depression, or anxiety. Increased abundance of genera within phyla Bacillota (e.g., Fusicatenibacter) and Pseudomonadota (e.g., Escherichia), along with decreased abundance of other Bacillota genera (e.g., Faecalibacterium), were associated with depression and anxiety symptoms. This review identified preliminary associations between specific bacterial taxa and depression and anxiety in children and adolescents. Larger studies using comprehensive analytical approaches are needed to explore the role of the gut microbiome in the genesis and treatment of internalizing disorders.
Non-nutritive sweeteners (NNSs) are popular sugar substitutes, valued for their potential to reduce caloric intake and associated health risks. However, their long-term effects on the human gut microbiome remain debatable. This study investigates the impact of tagatose, allulose, Rebaudioside-A (Reb-A), and saccharin on quorum-sensing (QS)-regulated phenotypes and gene expression in QS biosensor model bacteria. It sheds light on their potential influence on the gut microbiome. Our study revealed diverse effects among the NNSs. Tagatose and allulose demonstrated QS phenotypic inhibition in Chromobacterium violaceum (≈50%) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (20-50%) in a concentration-dependent manner. Additionally, tagatose and allulose decreased the P. aeruginosa lasI gene expression. Reb-A and saccharin presented a significant, however less prominent, phenotypic inhibition on C. violaceum (25-30%) and P. aeruginosa swarming motility (≈20%). Both NNSs decreased the expression of the lasI gene of P. aeruginosa. Molecular docking of QS regulatory proteins showed that saccharin and Reb-A have significantly higher binding affinity compared to allulose and tagatose, relative to native inducers. These results suggest the complex interactions mediated by NNSs in QS regulatory pathways. These findings provide valuable insights into the varied, species and dose-dependent effects of NNS on microbial communication, suggesting potential implications for the gut microbiome.
The social organisation of animals likely shapes the composition, diversity and stability of microbiomes, giving rise to the concept of the 'social microbiome'-microbial communities shared within and across social units, or 'islands', ranging from individuals to entire ecosystems. Understanding the connections and their underlying drivers is crucial for revealing how socioecology influences microbiomes and associated health outcomes. However, empirical assessments are still limited, and the relative influence of social organisation compared to intrinsic (biological) and extrinsic (environmental) factors in shaping microbiomes is particularly unclear. Here, we used a long-term, individual-based study of Kalahari meerkats (Suricata suricatta) to test predictions from the social microbiome concept. We assessed the relative influence of social factors, biological traits and environmental variables on gut microbial communities, while also accounting for the effects of microbial phylogenetic relatedness and within-host associations or co-occurrence independent of phylogeny. Meerkat microbiomes exhibited highly 'nested' and weakly 'modular' structures: individuals with lower diversity hosted amplicon sequence variants (ASVs) that were subsets of the overall community, though some bacterial taxa clustered distinctly among hosts. Microbiomes were more similar within social groups than between them. Group membership strongly influenced the co-occurrence of many beneficial ASVs, as well as a few potentially harmful ones. This effect was stronger than that of kinship, though closer relatives shared more similar microbiomes within some groups. While a range of social, biological and environmental factors influenced bacterial abundance, group membership, individual age and sampling time since sunrise had the most significant impact. ASV-ASV co-occurrence within hosts, independent of phylogeny, also played a major role. In contrast, individual-level social traits (e.g. dominance, immigration), other environmental (e.g. sampling temperature, rainfall, hours since foraging), demographic (sex) and health-related factors (body condition, disease status) had weaker effects on bacterial abundance. We show that gut microbiomes are shaped by a combination of factors, highlighting the importance of separating the effects of social organisation from individual social traits, biological factors, environmental influences and microbe-microbe interactions. By identifying drivers of both beneficial and detrimental bacterial co-occurrence, we provide a foundation for assessing how the social microbiome affects animal health and fitness.
In this study, we analysed differences in the infant gut microbiome between breastfed and formula-fed infants using novel machine learning techniques. Breast milk, rich in bioactive agents, supports microbiota composition and immune development, while formulas aim to replicate its nutritional profile. We applied a methodology combining the DADA2 pipeline for 16S rRNA sequencing with the Recursive Ensemble Feature Selection (REFS) algorithm for biomarker discovery. We analysed three publicly available 16S rRNA datasets: PRJNA633365 (70 stool samples from China), PRJDB7295 (40 stool samples from the Philippines), and PRJNA562650 (40 stool samples from China). The discovery dataset (PRJNA633365) revealed 16 significant taxa out of 1,227, validated across the other two datasets. Next, we compared REFS performance with another feature selection algorithm, SelectKBest. Finally, we conducted a literature review to explore links between identified taxa and medical conditions. Additionally, we used MicrobiomeAnalyst to examine associations with diseases, diet, and lifestyle. Our results show differences in the bacterial composition between breastfed and formula-fed infants, and these findings were validated in two independent datasets. Future research should explore the functional roles of these taxa and consider regional and dietary variability to enhance understanding of microbiome dynamics and long-term health outcomes.
Emerging evidence highlights that diet dynamically shapes the gut microbiome, which in turn influences cognitive function through bidirectional gut-brain communication, offering a promising target for mitigating cognitive decline and neurodegenerative disorders. While the Mediterranean diet (MedDiet) is a well-established dietary pattern with demonstrated neuroprotective benefits, the interplay between MedDiet adherence, gut microbiota, and longitudinal cognitive trajectories remains poorly understood. We aimed to identify a gut microbial signature of the MedDiet adherence and prospectively examine the associations of MedDiet adherence and MedDiet gut microbial signature (MedDiet-GMS) with cognitive changes over time in older adults at high risk of cognitive decline. This study included 746 participants (mean age 65 ± 5 years, 48% women) with overweight/obesity and metabolic syndrome. Adherence to the MedDiet was assessed using a validated 14-item Mediterranean Diet Adherence Screener (MEDAS). Baseline gut microbiota composition was profiled via 16S rRNA sequencing. Cognitive function was evaluated at baseline, 2, 4, and 6 years using a comprehensive neuropsychological battery. Elastic net regressions were applied to derive a MedDiet-GMS, and linear mixed models were used to assess associations of both MEDAS and MedDiet-GMS with trajectories of cognitive function, adjusting for potential confounders. Higher adherence to the MedDiet was associated with greater gut microbial diversity (p < 0.05) and distinct microbial composition (PERMANOVA, p = 0.001). The MedDiet-GMS comprised 20 taxa, including short-chain fatty acid-producers (e.g., Barnesiella, Butyricicoccus) positively weighted and pro-inflammatory taxa (e.g., Eggerthella) negatively weighted. Both higher MEDAS scores (p = 0.007) and MedDiet-GMS (p = 0.036) were independently associated with slower global cognitive decline. The MedDiet-GMS was additionally linked to preserved executive function (p = 0.049), while MEDAS was associated with attenuated general cognitive decline (p = 0.028). Eggerthella, inversely associated with MedDiet adherence, was linked to greater executive function decline (FDR < 0.05). Greater adherence to the MedDiet was associated with a favorable gut microbiota profile and slower cognitive decline over 6-year of follow-up. A microbiome-derived signature of MedDiet adherence was prospectively associated with favorable cognitive trajectories in older adults at risk of cognitive decline. External validation and experimental research are warranted to translate these findings into targeted microbiome-based dietary interventions for healthy cognitive aging.
Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection alters gut microbiota composition and function, but the impact of geography and antiretroviral therapy remains unclear. Here we determined gut microbiome alterations linked to HIV infection and antiretroviral treatment in 327 individuals with HIV and 260 control participants in cohorts from Uganda, Botswana and the USA via faecal metagenomics. We found that while HIV-associated taxonomic differences were mostly site specific, changes in microbial functional pathways were broadly consistent across the cohorts and exacerbated in individuals with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. Microbiome perturbations associated with antiretroviral medications were also geography dependent. In Botswana and Uganda, use of the non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor efavirenz was linked to depletion of Prevotella, disruption of interspecies metabolic networks, exacerbation of systemic inflammation and atherosclerosis. Efavirenz-associated Prevotella depletion may occur through cross-inhibition of prokaryotic reverse transcriptases involved in antiphage defences, as shown by computational and in vitro experiments. These observations could inform future geography-specific and microbiome-guided therapy.
Blood pressure (BP) variability is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease. Gut microbiome (GM) regulates BP, but its association with BP variability remains unclear. We examined the association of GM, determined by stool shotgun metagenomic sequencing, with 24-hour BP average real variability (ARV) assessed by ambulatory BP monitoring in 235 community-dwelling adults from Hong Kong (111 men and 124 women, mean age 54 ± 6 years) using covariate-adjusted statistical models. The GM alpha diversity was negatively associated with systolic BP (SBP) ARV in the full cohort, driven by women. In men, beta diversity of both GM species and function was associated with SBP ARV, while Bacteroides nordii and the steroid hormone biosynthesis pathway had a positive association with SBP ARV. Bacteroides nordii emerged as the key species driving the significant positive association of steroid hormone biosynthesis and other pro-pathogenic pathways with SBP ARV, including lipopolysaccharide biosynthesis, phenylalanine, and sulfur metabolism in men, warranting further investigation for its causal role. We demonstrated distinct signatures of GM dysbiosis, composition, and function with minimal overlap between men and women with increased 24-hour SBP variability. Our work suggests that sex differences should be an important consideration in mechanistic and therapeutic investigations of GM-mediated BP variability.
Oral administration of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) to rodents and humans is associated with an increase in gut bacteria that are predicted to synthesise short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs). We tested the hypothesis that physiological levels of omega-3 PUFAs in the distal intestinal lumen (1-50 μg/mL) are associated with increased SCFA synthesis in an in vitro fermentation model using faecal slurry from 10 healthy participants (mean age 30 years), with and without exogenous dietary fibres. SCFAs were measured by gas chromatography-flame ionisation detection (n = 10), and changes in bacterial composition were analysed by shotgun metagenomic sequencing (n = 6). In the presence of omega-3 PUFAs, there was a mean 9.3% (no inulin; P = 0.03) and 19.3% (+ 0.01 mg/mL inulin; P = 0.01) increase in total SCFA concentration at 24 h compared with paired control fermentations. Omega-3 PUFAs had a limited effect on the fermentation model microbiome in the absence of inulin. However, omega-3 PUFAs (50 μg/mL) were associated with increased abundance of Bifidobacteriaceae compared with paired control fermentations, if inulin (0.01 mg/mL) was present. Prebiotic activity of omega-3 PUFAs drives SCFA synthesis in an in vitro colonic fermentation model and is augmented by the soluble fibre inulin.
Over the past decade, emerging evidence has shed light on the role of the gut microbiota in the interface between diet and brain health. Olive oil, particularly virgin olive oil, a key component and major fat source in the Mediterranean diet, has exhibited widespread healthful benefits, including improvements in gut microbiota and cognitive health. Despite insights from preclinical studies into the relationship between virgin olive oil consumption, gut microbiota, and cognitive function, human research in this area remains limited. Therefore, our study aims to investigate the interplay between total olive oil consumption and its subtypes, gut microbiota, and changes in cognitive function in older adults who were cognitively healthy at baseline but at high risk of cognitive decline. In this prospective cohort study, we assessed a total of 656 participants aged 55 to 75y (mean age 65.0 ± 4.9y, 47.9% women) with overweight/obesity and metabolic syndrome who provided stool samples and completed a validated semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire at baseline and a comprehensive battery of neuropsychological tests at baseline and at a 2-y follow-up. Results from the multivariable linear regression models showed that higher consumption of virgin olive oil was associated with improved cognitive function over a 2-y follow-up, and a more diverse gut microbiota overall structure at baseline. Conversely, increased consumption of common olive oil is linked to lower alpha diversity of the microbial communities, and accelerated cognitive decline. Mediation analysis suggests that gut microbiota and particularly the Adlercreutzia, may serve as a mediator taxon in the association between virgin olive oil consumption and positive changes in general cognitive function. Higher consumption of virgin olive oil was associated with cognitive preservation, possibly mediated by favorable alterations in gut microbiota composition. Our study provides novel insights into the complex interplay between different types of olive oil consumption, gut microbiota, and changes in cognitive function. These findings underscore the potential of microbiota-targeted dietary strategies to promote cognitive health in aging populations, though further high-quality and clinical cohort studies are required. Video Abstract.
Current efforts to reduce the incidence of non-communicable disease (NCD) are slow, but increasing evidence highlights the microbiome as a potential target for prevention. The majority of microbial development occurs in the first 1,000 days of life, presenting opportunities for strategic intervention to reduce the prevalence of future NCDs. In this review, we explore the social, structural, and political barriers that may hinder physiological gut microbial development in the first 1,000 days in the context of current scientific knowledge, focusing on nutritional factors in pregnancy, and during the exclusive breastfeeding and complementary feeding periods. We summarise emerging evidence and explore obstacles to nutritional choices affecting microbial development, and unpack the rhetoric that healthy eating to develop a microbiome that supports optimum health is an individual choice. As evidence on the role of the microbiome in health and disease grows, specific attention must be applied to existing social, structural, and political barriers that may hinder optimal microbial development. Addressing the role of corporate actors and social determinants influencing dietary choices and barriers surrounding breastfeeding must be prioritised, alongside efforts to advance basic scientific research. Until a wider public health perspective is taken, the success of interventions and recommendations will be limited.