LEITNER Miriam Kristin

Gender Specific Effects of L. casei Shirota on Human Microbiota and Metabolomics in Men and Women with Metabolic Syndrome

The number of people with metabolic diseases (e.g. Diabetes mellitus, adipositas)  and associated risks (cardiovascular diseases, insults) rises worldwide. As genetic and lifestyle factors alone cannot explain this epidemia, other resasons have to be considered. The intestinal microbiota has been evidenced to influence the efficiency of nutrient extraction from the diet, and changes in the microbiota community composition have been seen alongside with the onset of metabolic disease.

Studies show a different risk profile of metabolic diseases according to sex and gender. Besides factors such as the genetic background and the individual environment, differences in the intestinal microbiota between men and women have to be considered to be responsible for that.

The study "Gendermiks" explores whether differences between men and women in microbiota composition are related with differences in metabolic disease etiology and progression. Therefore molecular, DNA-based methods will be applied for the community profiling of the intestinal microbiota, while at the same time clinical data (blood parameters, anthropometric parameters, metabolomics)  will be assessed. Relationships among microbiological and clinical data as well as information on lifestyle and diet collected through the use of questionnaires will be explored via multivariate statistical analysis performed in the gender-context.
Additionally, potential beneficial effects of the L. casei Shirota bacteria both on the microbiota communities and on clinical parameters associated with the metabolic disease complex will be tested in subgroups of prediabetic men and women.

Results according to the interrelation between metabolic parameters, anthropometric measurements and the metabolome will help to understand the complexicity of metabolic diseases. Exploring sex and gender differences will path a way towards personalized medicine.

We aim to answer the following questions:

Primary aims:

- Which microbiome and metabolome signatures are associated with the metabolic syndrome?

- Are there sex specific differences in the composition of the microbiome between men and women having a metabolic syndrome?

-Is there an interrelation between microbiotic composition and metabolic parameters?

- Are there differences in the interrelation between the microbiome and the metabolome according to sex?

- How are the metabolomic and microbiotic signatures interrelated to gender, life style and anthropometric factors?

Secondary aims:

-How do microbiome and metabolome signatures change with the intake of Lactobazillus Casei Shirota?

- Are there sex specific differences according to this change? 

The most important outcome will be to successfully integrate clinical, microbiological, metabolomic, and socio-environmental data in a systems biology-based approach for providing answers to the project’s research questions.

Methods and Skills:

PCR; clinical studies