Reviews and feature articleGut microbiota, probiotics, and vitamin D: Interrelated exposures influencing allergy, asthma, and obesity?
Section snippets
Gut microbiota development
Anaerobes (particularly gram-positive Firmicutes and Actinobacteria and gram-negative Bacteroidetes) are the predominant bacteria in the gastrointestinal tracts of adult subjects.52 In human subjects the gastrointestinal tract is sterile at birth. Multiple factors determine gut colonization, including bacterial characteristics, mucosal cell characteristics, mode of delivery, and type of diet.36, 53, 54
The initial neonatal gut colonization is determined either by maternal flora or bacteria from
Gut microbiota and immune responses
Murine models suggest that bacterial gut colonization is essential for postnatal maturation of TH1 immune responses and induction of oral tolerance.85 However, the specific microbes or groups of microbes responsible for this phenomenon have not been confidently identified. In neonatal mice the administration of antibiotics leads to alterations of the intestinal flora and impaired TH1 immune responses86 that can be reversed by administration of Enterococcus faecalis (and, to a lesser extent,
Gut microbiota and atopic diseases
In cross-sectional studies the composition of the gut flora differs between atopic and nonatopic infants.31, 32 In studies from Estonia and Sweden, atopic infants have lower counts of lactobacilli, bifidobacteria, and Bacteroides species and higher levels of i-caproic acid (a marker of C difficile) compared with nonatopic infants.32, 33 Although an English study found no differences in bifidobacteria or lactic acid bacteria between children (ages 3-5 years) with and without atopic wheeze, it
Gut microbiota and obesity
Experimental models highlight several mechanisms connecting the gut microbiota to obesity and metabolic disorders. The recognition that gut microbiota is important in the regulation of energy extraction from the diet100 came from the observation that germ-free mice (raised in the absence of microorganisms) were leaner than mice with a normal gut microbiota, even though mice with a normal gut microbiota were fed 30% less calories.101 Moreover, when germ-free mice were transplanted with gut
Probiotics, atopic diseases, and obesity
Emerging evidence suggests that a less diverse population of intestinal anaerobes in early life is associated with both atopic diseases (Table I) and obesity.43, 108 Probiotics (live bacteria given orally that allow for intestinal colonization) provide a relatively safe microbial stimulus by means of cultures of organisms that are part of the gut flora of healthy infants.109 In a study of 132 infants with a family history of atopy,110 treatment with L rhamnosus strain GG before and after birth
Vitamin D, gut microbiota, asthma, and obesity
Vitamin D deficiency has been associated with early-life wheeze, reduced asthma control20, 21, 45 and allergic diseases,20, 45 and increased body mass index.46, 47, 48 In our recent review in this Journal,6 we had identified both gut microbiota and vitamin D as potential common early-life exposures for asthma and obesity. It is unknown whether vitamin D deficiency affects the composition of the intestinal microbiota. Although a small study suggested that decreased vitamin D intake was
Conclusions
Significant differences between the gut flora of children in industrialized and developing nations suggest that the high prevalence of allergic diseases (eg, atopic asthma) and obesity in affluent nations might be due to changes in the intestinal flora of young infants. Although findings from cross-sectional31, 32, 33 and birth cohort7, 8, 16 studies suggest that the maternal and neonatal gut flora influence childhood atopic diseases and obesity, these studies have been limited by small sample
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2021, Biomedicine and PharmacotherapyCitation Excerpt :Respiratory conditions including chronic lung disorder; asthma [30], bacterial infections; tuberculosis [31], chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), cystic fibrosis, and viral infection such as influenza are all associated with intestinal manifestations and alterations in the composition of gut microbiota, suggesting the correlation between lungs and gut [32]. The use of probiotics has been studied preclinically and is found to be beneficial in asthma models [33]. The administration of Lactobacillus casei or L. rhamnosus and Bifidobacterium Bifidum were found to decrease the viral titers and alleviate the symptoms in respiratory influenzas virus infection [32,34].
Series editors: Donald Y. M. Leung, MD, PhD, and Dennis K. Ledford, MD