Stable isotope tracing in vivo reveals a metabolic bridge linking the microbiota to host histone acetylation
Peder J. Lund, Leah Gates, Marylène Leboeuf, Sarah A. Smith, Lillian Chau, Mariana Lopes, Elliot S. Friedman, Yedidya Saiman, Min Soo Kim, Clarissa Shoffler, Christopher Petucci, C. David Allis, Gary D. Wu, Benjamin A. García
Abstract
C-labeled fiber, we demonstrate that the microbiota supplies carbon for histone acetylation. Subsequent metabolomic profiling revealed hundreds of labeled molecules and supported a microbial contribution to host fatty acid metabolism, which declined in response to colitis and correlated with reduced expression of genes involved in fatty acid oxidation. These results illuminate the flow of carbon from the diet to the host via the microbiota, disruptions to which may affect energy homeostasis in the distal gut and contribute to the development of colitis.