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Meta-omics analysis of elite athletes identifies a performance-enhancing microbe that functions via lactate metabolism.

ABSTRACT: The human gut microbiome is linked to many states of human health and disease¹. The metabolic repertoire of the gut microbiome is vast, but the health implications of these bacterial pathways are poorly understood. In this study, we identify a link between members of the genus Veillonella and exercise performance. We observed an increase in Veillonella relative abundance in marathon runners postmarathon and isolated a strain of Veillonella atypica from stool samples. Inoculation of this strain into mice significantly increased exhaustive treadmill run time. Veillonella utilize lactate as their sole carbon source, which prompted us to perform a shotgun metagenomic analysis in a cohort of elite athletes, finding that every gene in a major pathway metabolizing lactate to propionate is at higher relative abundance postexercise. Using ¹³C₃-labeled lactate in mice, we demonstrate that serum lactate crosses the epithelial barrier into the lumen of the gut. We also show that intrarectal instillation of propionate is sufficient to reproduce the increased treadmill run time performance observed with V. atypica gavage. Taken together, these studies reveal that V. atypica improves run time via its metabolic conversion of exercise-induced lactate into propionate, thereby identifying a natural, microbiome-encoded enzymatic process that enhances athletic performance.

SUBMITTER: Scheiman J

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7368972 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Meta-omics analysis of elite athletes identifies a performance-enhancing microbe that functions via lactate metabolism.

Scheiman Jonathan J Luber Jacob M JM Chavkin Theodore A TA MacDonald Tara T Tung Angela A Pham Loc-Duyen LD Wibowo Marsha C MC Wurth Renee C RC Punthambaker Sukanya S Tierney Braden T BT Yang Zhen Z Hattab Mohammad W MW Avila-Pacheco Julian J Clish Clary B CB Lessard Sarah S Church George M GM Kostic Aleksandar D AD

Nature medicine 20190624 7

The human gut microbiome is linked to many states of human health and disease<sup>1</sup>. The metabolic repertoire of the gut microbiome is vast, but the health implications of these bacterial pathways are poorly understood. In this study, we identify a link between members of the genus Veillonella and exercise performance. We observed an increase in Veillonella relative abundance in marathon runners postmarathon and isolated a strain of Veillonella atypica from stool samples. Inoculation of th ...[more]

PMID: 31235964

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Project description:The aim of the study was to identify genetic variants associated with personal best scores in Turkish track and field athletes and to compare allelic frequencies between sprint/power and endurance athletes and controls using a whole-exome sequencing (WES) approach, followed by replication studies in independent cohorts. The discovery phase involved 60 elite Turkish athletes (31 sprint/power and 29 endurance) and 20 ethnically matched controls. The replication phase involved 1132 individuals (115 elite Russian sprinters, 373 elite Russian endurance athletes (of which 75 athletes were with VO2max measurements), 209 controls, 148 Russian and 287 Finnish individuals with muscle fiber composition and cross-sectional area (CSA) data). None of the single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) reached an exome-wide significance level (p < 2.3 × 10-7) in genotype-phenotype and case-control studies of Turkish athletes. However, of the 53 nominally (p < 0.05) associated SNPs, four functional variants were replicated. The SIRT1 rs41299232 G allele was significantly over-represented in Turkish (p = 0.047) and Russian (p = 0.018) endurance athletes compared to sprint/power athletes and was associated with increased VO2max (p = 0.037) and a greater proportion of slow-twitch muscle fibers (p = 0.035). The NUP210 rs2280084 A allele was significantly over-represented in Turkish (p = 0.044) and Russian (p = 0.012) endurance athletes compared to sprint/power athletes. The TRPM2 rs1785440 G allele was significantly over-represented in Turkish endurance athletes compared to sprint/power athletes (p = 0.034) and was associated with increased VO2max (p = 0.008). The AGRN rs4074992 C allele was significantly over-represented in Turkish sprint/power athletes compared to endurance athletes (p = 0.037) and was associated with a greater CSA of fast-twitch muscle fibers (p = 0.024). In conclusion, we present the first WES study of athletes showing that this approach can be used to identify novel genetic markers associated with exercise- and sport-related phenotypes.

Project description:Along with the increasing popularity of taekwondo, there is a need of evidence-based talent identification (TID) and development programs based upon profiles of future elite athletes. This study first aims to investigate the differences between elite and non-elite taekwondo athletes in anthropometry, physical performance and motor coordination. The second aim is to demonstrate the applicability of z-scores in TID research. A total of 98 Taekwondo athletes between 12 and 17 years old were tested using a generic test battery consisting of four anthropometrical (Height, Weight, Fat Percentage, BMI), six physical performance (Sit & Reach, Sprint 5m, Sprint 30m, Counter Movement Jump, Squat Jump, Endurance Shuttle Run) and three motor coordination tests (Moving Sideways, Jumping Sideways, Walking Backwards). Based on the individual success at international competition level, 18 were categorised as elite athletes and 80 were considered as non-elite. T-tests (step 1) on raw test scores and MANOVAs on z-scores (step 2) were conducted to examine differences between the elite and non-elite taekwondo athletes for anthropometry, physical performance and motor coordination tests. Finally, z-scores were reconverted to raw scores to demonstrate practical significance for coaches. Overall, elite taekwondo athletes score better compared to the non-elite group. The MANOVA analysis better scores for elites on fat percentage (-0.55 versus 0.12;p = 0.006), BMI (-0.37 versus 0,08;p = 0.067) sprint speed 30m (-0.48 versus 0.11;p = 0.029), counter movement jump (0.79 versus -0.18;p = 0.000), squat jump (0.42 versus -0.11;p = 0.041), moving sideways (0.79 versus -0.18;p = 0.000) and walking backwards (0.54 versus -0.12;p = 0.006). This study confirms our knowledge on physical profiles of elite taekwondo athletes and expands our knowledge to the domain of motor coordination. This study showed how the z-score method can be used to distinguish between elite and non-elite athletes, the former being low in number by definition.

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Meta-omics analysis of elite athletes identifies a performance-enhancing microbe that functions via lactate metabolism.

Publications

Meta-omics analysis of elite athletes identifies a performance-enhancing microbe that functions via lactate metabolism.

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