Microbiota-induced cytokine responses participate in gut homeostasis, but the cytokine balance at steady-state and the role of individual bacterial species in setting the balance remain elusive. Herein, systematic analysis of gnotobiotic mice indicated that colonization by a whole mouse microbiota orchestrated a broad spectrum of proinflammatory T helper 1 (Th1), Th17, and regulatory T cell responses whereas most tested complex microbiota and individual bacteria failed to efficiently stimulate intestinal T cell responses. This function appeared the prerogative of a restricted number of bacteria, the prototype of which is the segmented filamentous bacterium, a nonculturable Clostridia-related species, which could largely recapitulate the coordinated maturation of T cell responses induced by the whole mouse microbiota. This bacterium, already known as a potent inducer of mucosal IgA, likely plays a unique role in the postnatal maturation of gut immune functions. Changes in the infant flora may thus influence the development of host immune responses.

The human intestine is densely populated by a microbial consortium whose metabolic activities are influenced by, among others, bifidobacteria. However, the genetic basis of adaptation of bifidobacteria to the human gut is poorly understood. Analysis of the 2,214,650-bp genome of Bifidobacterium bifidum PRL2010, a strain isolated from infant stool, revealed a nutrient-acquisition strategy that targets host-derived glycans, such as those present in mucin. Proteome and transcriptome profiling revealed a set of chromosomal loci responsible for mucin metabolism that appear to be under common transcriptional control and with predicted functions that allow degradation of various O-linked glycans in mucin. Conservation of the latter gene clusters in various B. bifidum strains supports the notion that host-derived glycan catabolism is an important colonization factor for B. bifidum with concomitant impact on intestinal microbiota ecology.coevolution | genomics | host-glycans metabolism | human gut intestinal bacteria | mucin

BackgroundEarly microbial colonization of the gut reduces the incidence of infectious, inflammatory and autoimmune diseases. Recent population studies reveal that childhood hygiene is a significant risk factor for development of inflammatory bowel disease, thereby reinforcing the hygiene hypothesis and the potential importance of microbial colonization during early life. The extent to which early-life environment impacts on microbial diversity of the adult gut and subsequent immune processes has not been comprehensively investigated thus far. We addressed this important question using the pig as a model to evaluate the impact of early-life environment on microbe/host gut interactions during development.ResultsGenetically-related piglets were housed in either indoor or outdoor environments or in experimental isolators. Analysis of over 3,000 16S rRNA sequences revealed major differences in mucosa-adherent microbial diversity in the ileum of adult pigs attributable to differences in early-life environment. Pigs housed in a natural outdoor environment showed a dominance of Firmicutes, in particular Lactobacillus, whereas animals housed in a hygienic indoor environment had reduced Lactobacillus and higher numbers of potentially pathogenic phylotypes. Our analysis revealed a strong negative correlation between the abundance of Firmicutes and pathogenic bacterial populations in the gut. These differences were exaggerated in animals housed in experimental isolators. Affymetrix microarray technology and Real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction revealed significant gut-specific gene responses also related to early-life environment. Significantly, indoor-housed pigs displayed increased expression of Type 1 interferon genes, Major Histocompatibility Complex class I and several chemokines. Gene Ontology and pathway analysis further confirmed these results.ConclusionEarly-life environment significantly affects both microbial composition of the adult gut and mucosal innate immune function. We observed that a microbiota dominated by lactobacilli may function to maintain mucosal immune homeostasis and limit pathogen colonization.

Emerging data demonstrate that the activity of immune cells can be modulated by microbial molecules. Here, we show that the short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) pentanoate and butyrate enhance the anti-tumor activity of cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) and chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells through metabolic and epigenetic reprograming. We show that in vitro treatment of CTLs and CAR T cells with pentanoate and butyrate increases the function of mTOR as a central cellular metabolic sensor, and inhibits class I histone deacetylase activity. This reprogramming results in elevated production of effector molecules such as CD25, IFN-γ and TNF-α, and significantly enhances the anti-tumor activity of antigen-specific CTLs and ROR1-targeting CAR T cells in syngeneic murine melanoma and pancreatic cancer models. Our data shed light onto microbial molecules that may be used for enhancing cellular anti-tumor immunity. Collectively, we identify pentanoate and butyrate as two SCFAs with therapeutic utility in the context of cellular cancer immunotherapy.

Overexpression of histone deacetylase (HDAC) isoforms has been implicated in a variety of disease pathologies, from cancer and colitis to cardiovascular disease and neurodegeneration, thus HDAC inhibitors have a long history as therapeutic targets. The gut microbiota can influence HDAC activity via microbial-derived metabolites. While HDAC inhibition (HDI) by gut commensals has long been attributed to the short chain fatty acid (SCFA) butyrate, the potent metabolic reservoir provided by the gut microbiota and its role in host physiology warrants further investigation in a variety of diseases. Cell-free supernatants (CFS) of 79 phylogenetically diverse gut commensals isolated from healthy human donors were screened for their SCFA profile and their total HDAC inhibitory properties. The three most potent HDAC inhibiting strains were further evaluated and subjected to additional analysis of specific class I and class II HDAC inhibition. All three HDAC inhibitors are butyrate producing strains, and one of these also produced substantial levels of valeric acid and hexanoic acid. Valeric acid was identified as a potential contributor to the HDAC inhibitory effects. This bacterial strain, Megasphaera massiliensis MRx0029, was added to a model microbial consortium to assess its metabolic activity in interaction with a complex community. M. massiliensis MRx0029 successfully established in the consortium and enhanced the total and specific HDAC inhibitory function by increasing the capacity of the community to produce butyrate and valeric acid. We here show that single bacterial strains from the human gut microbiota have potential as novel HDI therapeutics for disease areas involving host epigenetic aberrations.