Cited by 593Gut microbiota and healthLiver Disease Diagnosis and TreatmentAlcohol Consumption and Health Effects

Association between composition of the human gastrointestinal microbiome and development of fatty liver with choline deficiency

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Spencer, Melanie D., Hamp, Timothy J., Reid, Robert W., Fischer, Leslie M., Zeisel, Steven H., Fodor, Anthony A.·2011·Gastroenterology

Abstract

Background & aims Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease affects up to 30% of the US population, but the mechanisms underlying this condition are incompletely understood. We investigated how diet standardization and choline deficiency influence the composition of the microbial community in the human gastrointestinal tract and the development of fatty liver under conditions of choline deficiency.Methods We performed a 2-month inpatient study of 15 female subjects who were placed on well-controlled diets in which choline levels were manipulated. We used 454-FLX pyrosequencing of 16S ribosomal RNA bacterial genes to characterize microbiota in stool samples collected over the course of the study.Results The compositions of the gastrointestinal microbial communities changed with choline levels of diets; each individual's microbiome remained distinct for the duration of the experiment, even though all subjects were fed identical diets. Variations between subjects in levels of Gammaproteobacteria and Erysipelotrichi were directly associated with changes in liver fat in each subject during choline depletion. Levels of these bacteria, change in amount of liver fat, and a single nucleotide polymorphism that affects choline were combined into a model that accurately predicted the degree to which subjects developed fatty liver on a choline-deficient diet.Conclusions Host factors and gastrointestinal bacteria each respond to dietary choline deficiency, although the gut microbiota remains distinct in each individual. We identified bacterial biomarkers of fatty liver that result from choline deficiency, adding to the accumulating evidence that gastrointestinal microbes have a role in metabolic disorders.

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Crossref · 10.1053/j.gastro.2010.11.049

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  1. [30]Zeisel SH daCosta KA Youssef M Conversion of dietary choline to trimethylamine and dimethylamine in rats: dose-response relationship J Nutr 1989 119 800 4 2723829
  2. [33]Institute of Medicine NAPU Dietary intakes for folate, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B12, panthothenic acid, biotin, and choline 1998 390 422 National Academy Press Washington, DC 23193625

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Authors
Spencer, M. D., Hamp, T. J., Reid, R. W., Fischer, L. M., Zeisel, S. H., & Fodor, A. A.
Affiliations
  • University of North Carolina at Charlotte (US)
  • University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (US)
Corresponding author
Fodor, Anthony A.
Venue
Gastroenterology
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2011-03
Volume
140
Issue
3
Pages
976-986
ISSN
0016-5085 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2147163488
Cited by
593
References
53
Citations by year
2026: 17 · 2025: 21 · 2024: 26 · 2023: 37 · 2022: 35 · 2021: 46 · 2020: 59 · 2019: 52 · 2018: 63 · 2017: 41 · 2016: 37 · 2015: 37 · 2014: 45 · 2013: 37 · 2012: 27
FWCI
9.90
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Gastroenterology (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
  • National Institutes of Health
  • National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (R01DK055865, DK-056350, DK055865, P30DK056350)
  • National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (P30ES010126)
  • National Center for Research Resources (RR00046, M01RR000046)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Gut microbiota and health
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Epidemiology › Liver Disease Diagnosis and Treatment
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Pathology and Forensic Medicine › Alcohol Consumption and Health Effects
Keywords
non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, choline deficiency, gut microbiota, hepatic lipid accumulation, Gammaproteobacteria, bacterial biomarkers, single nucleotide polymorphisms, host-microbe interactions, metabolic disorders
MeSH terms
Adult, Choline Deficiency, Fatty Liver, Feces, Female, Humans, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, North Carolina, Promoter Regions, Genetic, Risk Factors, Time Factors, Cluster Analysis, Risk Assessment, Genetic Predisposition to Disease, Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide, Ribotyping, Principal Component Analysis, Gastrointestinal Tract, Phosphatidylethanolamine N-Methyltransferase, Metagenome, Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease

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