Association of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) levels with the gut microbiota and metabolites in postmenopausal women in China

Abstract

Background Vitamin D insufficiency or deficiency is associated with an altered microbiota in older men. However, the relationship between the gut microbiota and 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) levels remains unknown in postmenopausal women. In this study, fecal microbiota profiles for 88 postmenopausal women in the high 25(OH)D (HVD) group (n = 44) and the low 25(OH)D (LVD) group (n = 44) were determined. An integrated 16S rRNA gene sequencing and liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (LC–MS)-based metabolomics approach was applied to explore the association of serum 25(OH)D levels with the gut microbiota and fecal metabolic phenotype. Adjustments were made using several statistical models for potential confounding variables identified from the literature. Results The results demonstrated that the community diversity estimated by the Observe, Chao1 and ACE indexes was significantly lower in the LVD group than in the HVD group. Additionally, two kinds of characteristic differences in the microflora were analyzed in the HVD group, and ten kinds of characteristic differences in the microflora were analyzed in the LVD group. We observed that some bacteria belonging to the genera Bifidobacterium, Bacillus, F0332 and Gemella, were enriched in the LVD group, as were other genera, including Lachnoclostridium, UC5_1_2E3, Ruminococcus_gnavus_group and un_f_Lachnospiraceae. Christensenellaceae, Eggerthellaceae and Cloacibacillus were enriched in the HVD group. The L-pyroglutamic acid, inosine, and L-homocysteic acid levels were higher in the HVD group and were negatively correlated with the 1,2-benzenedicarboxylic acid and cholic acid metabolic levels. Conclusions These observations provide a better understanding of the relationships between serum 25(OH)D levels and the fecal microbiota and metabolites in postmenopausal women.

Gut microbiota-based discriminative model for patients with ulcerative colitis: A meta-analysis and real-world study

“…The human body contains approximately 1 to 2 kg of microorganisms per adult individual, which has been found to play a crucial role in the host's overall health and well-being. [19][20][21] Specifically, studies have extensively explored the regulatory role of gut microbiota in inflammatory bowel disease. [12,22] Observational studies in various countries, including the United States, Europe, Australia, and China, have also shown similar correlations [1,11,22,23] ; however, differences in diet, culture, and lifestyle habits can limit the generalizability of these findings, as the inherent gut microbiota can vary significantly across different countries and cohorts.…”

Exploring the Role of Vitamin D and the Gut Microbiome: A Cross-Sectional Study of Individuals with Irritable Bowel Syndrome and Healthy Controls

“…This is due in part to small sample sizes in clinical trials and heterogeneity in dosing and treatment duration, as well as conditions studied. A recent study of postmenopausal women in China (60% had plasma 25(OH)D levels above 20 ng/mL) found that those with higher vitamin D levels had greater alpha diversity as compared to those with low vitamin D levels (25(OH)D levels <20 ng/mL) (Gong et al, 2022). Higher vitamin D serum and plasma levels have been shown to promote positive, albeit subtle, changes in the gut microbiota in other conditions such as inflammatory bowel disease (e.g., increased microbial diversity, increased butyrate-producing bacteria, and increased serum antimicrobial peptide cathelicidin) (Battistini et al, 2020).…”

Application of metabolomics in osteoporosis research

“…The microorganisms in the gastrointestinal tract are collectively referred to as the gut flora and consist of approximately 10 trillion bacteria ( 84 ). Recent studies have provided substantial evidence for the existence of a “gut microbiota-metabolite-bone axis”, and OP is closely associated with the development and progression of gut microbiota imbalances ( 26 , 27 , 35 , 85 – 87 ). He et al ( 26 ) combined LC-MS metabolomics with 16S rRNA gene sequencing.…”