Title: Exploring Bifidobacterium Species Community and Functional Variations with Human Gut Microbiome Structure and Health beyond Infancy
| Published: | October 9, 2023 |
Bifidobacterium is a gut microbiome component, the abundance of which varies with age and health status. The Bifidobacterium community in the human gut has been investigated extensively in infants and among adults undergoing dietary interventions. Nevertheless, less attention has been given to understanding the diversity in distribution and functions of Bifidobacterium species beyond infancy.
This study explores the ecology of Bifidobacterium communities in a large public dataset of human gut metagenomes, predominately obtained from adults.
Several Bifidobacterium-based clusters were identified, differing in terms of their presence and abundance of species. Clusters enriched in both B. longum and B. adolescentis displayed a more diverse gut microbiome, elevated levels of butyrate producers, and were commonly observed in healthy individuals. B.bifidum MAGs harboring a set of genes potentially related to phages were more prevalent in clusters associated with a lower gut microbiome diversity, and underscore the possible role of phages in shaping the composition of the gut microbiome.
This study expands our knowledge of the ecology and variability of the Bifidobacterium community, particularly in adults, and its specific association with the gut microbiome and health. Its findings may guide the rational selection of specific Bifidobacterium strains to shape the gut microbiome composition based on an individual’s existing community.
Find the study here: Microbiome Research Reports | Exploring Bifidobacterium species community and functional variations with human gut microbiome structure and health beyond infancy (oaepublish.com)