• Multiple benefits
• Therapeutic potential
What is already known on this topic
People with a particular microbiota configuration, or enterotype, called Bacteroides 2 (Bact2) tend to have more Bacteroides bacteria than Faecalibacterium microbes and a lower load of gut microbes than do those with other microbiota configurations. These individuals also tend to have gut inflammation and diseases such as multiple sclerosis, which are also thought to involve inflammation.What this research adds
Researchers looked at the prevalence of Bact2 enterotype in stool samples from nearly 890 people from France, Germany, and Denmark. They found that Bact2 is more common in obese than lean individuals. But obese people who take statins, a common medication used to lower cholesterol, were less likely to have the Bact2 enterotype.Conclusion
The findings suggest that statins could modulate the disrupted gut microbiota and linked inflammation in obese individuals.
Obese people tend to have a particular combination of bacteria in the gut that is associated with inflammation. But those who take statins, a common medication used to lower cholesterol, have a healthier gut microbiota than expected, a new study found.
The findings, published in Nature, suggest that statins could modulate the disrupted gut microbiota and linked inflammation in obesity. But, to ascertain whether this effect is reproducible, the potential benefits of statins on the microbiota require further evaluation in large clinical trials, the researchers say. “Our results open a whole range of possibilities for novel, gut microbiota modulating drug development,” says study co-senior author Jeroen Raes at KU Leuven.
Previous studies have shown that people with a particular microbiota configuration, or enterotype, called Bacteroides 2 (Bact2) tend to have more Bacteroides bacteria than Faecalibacterium microbes and a lower load of gut microbes than do those with other microbiota configurations. These individuals also tend to have gut inflammation and diseases such as multiple sclerosis, which are also thought to involve inflammation. What’s more, experiments in mice revealed that statins can influence bacterial growth.
To assess the role of statins on the gut microbiota, a team of researchers led by Raes and Karine Clément at Sorbonne University assessed the prevalence of Bact2 in stool samples from 888 people from France, Germany, and Denmark.
Multiple benefits
The researchers discovered that Bact2 is more common in obese than lean individuals. The team also found that the Bact2 enterotype is characterized by low levels of bacteria that produce the short-chain fatty acid butyrate, which could help to preserve the barrier function of the cells lining the gut, reducing inflammation in the body.
However, obese people taking statins were less likely to have the Bact2 enterotype. Only 5.9% of obese individuals on statins had the Bact2 enterotype, compared to 17.7% of obese people not taking statins. The prevalence of Bact2 enterotype in obese individuals taking statins was comparable to that observed in lean people, the researchers found.
Therapeutic potential
The team validated the findings in two additional groups of people, together comprising more than 2,600 individuals.
“These results suggest statins could potentially modulate the harmful gut microbiota alterations sustaining inflammation in obesity,” says study first author Sara Vieira-Silva.
“On one hand, by appeasing gut inflammation, statin therapy might contribute to a less hostile gut environment, allowing the development of a healthy microbiota,” Vieira-Silva says. On the other hand, she adds, statins could promote the growth of non-inflammatory bacteria, which may explain the anti-inflammatory effects of statin therapy.
