Codiversification of gut microbiota with humans
Taichi A. Suzuki, J. Liam Fitzstevens, Victor T. Schmidt, Hagay Enav, Kelsey E. Huus, Mirabeau Mbong Ngwese, Anne Grießhammer, Anne Pfleiderer, Bayodé Roméo Adégbitè, Jeannot Fréjus Zinsou, Meral Esen, Thirumalaisamy P. Velavan, Ayôla Akim Adégnika, Lê Hữu Song, Timothy D. Spector, Amanda L. Muehlbauer, Nina Marchi, Hyena Kang, Lisa Maier, Ran Blekhman, Laure Ségurel, GwangPyo Ko, Nicholas D. Youngblut, Peter G. Kremsner, Ruth E. Ley
Abstract
The gut microbiomes of human populations worldwide have many core microbial species in common. However, within a species, some strains can show remarkable population specificity. The question is whether such specificity arises from a shared evolutionary history (codiversification) between humans and their microbes. To test for codiversification of host and microbiota, we analyzed paired gut metagenomes and human genomes for 1225 individuals in Europe, Asia, and Africa, including mothers and their children. Between and within countries, a parallel evolutionary history was evident for humans and their gut microbes. Moreover, species displaying the strongest codiversification independently evolved traits characteristic of host dependency, including reduced genomes and oxygen and temperature sensitivity. These findings all point to the importance of understanding the potential role of population-specific microbial strains in microbiome-mediated disease phenotypes.