High-fat diet determines the composition of the murine gut microbiome independently of obesity.

ABSTRACT:

Background & aims

The composition of the gut microbiome is affected by host phenotype, genotype, immune function, and diet. Here, we used the phenotype of RELMbeta knockout (KO) mice to assess the influence of these factors.

Methods

Both wild-type and RELMbeta KO mice were lean on a standard chow diet, but, upon switching to a high-fat diet, wild-type mice became obese, whereas RELMbeta KO mice remained comparatively lean. To investigate the influence of diet, genotype, and obesity on microbiome composition, we used deep sequencing to characterize 25,790 16S rDNA sequences from uncultured bacterial communities from both genotypes on both diets.

Results

We found large alterations associated with switching to the high-fat diet, including a decrease in Bacteroidetes and

SUBMITTER: Hildebrandt MA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2770164 | biostudies-literature | 2009 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature