Transplantation of an obesity-associated human gut microbiota to mice induces vascular dysfunction and glucose intolerance
S. Raj J. Trikha, Dustin M. Lee, Kayl E. Ecton, Scott D. Wrigley, Allegra R. Vazquez, Nicole S. Litwin, Keely N. Thomas, Yuren Wei, Micah L. Battson, Sarah A. Johnson, Kristine A. Kuhn, Sean P. Colgan, Christopher L. Gentile, Tiffany L. Weir
Abstract
. Endothelium-dependent dilation, aortic pulse wave velocity and glucose tolerance were significantly altered in mice receiving microbiota from the obese donor relative to those receiving microbiota from the lean donor or those remaining germ-free.These data indicate that the obesity-associated human gut microbiota is sufficient to alter the vascular phenotype in germ-free mice in the absence of differences in body weight or dietary manipulation, and provide justification for future clinical trials to test the efficacy of microbiota-targeted therapies in the prevention or treatment of cardiovascular disease.