Loading...
Metabolome and microbiome profiling of a stress-sensitive rat model of gut-brain axis dysfunction
Citations
Altmetric:
Date
2019-10-01
Collections
Files
Loading...
main article
Adobe PDF, 3.1 MB
Research Projects
Organizational Units
Journal Issue
Citation
Bassett, S.A., Young, W., Fraser, K. et al. Metabolome and microbiome profiling of a stress-sensitive rat model of gut-brain axis dysfunction. Sci Rep 9, 14026 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-50593-3
Abstract
Stress negatively impacts gut and brain health. Individual diferences in response to stress have been
linked to genetic and environmental factors and more recently, a role for the gut microbiota in the
regulation of stress-related changes has been demonstrated. However, the mechanisms by which
these factors infuence each other are poorly understood, and there are currently no established robust
biomarkers of stress susceptibility. To determine the metabolic and microbial signatures underpinning
physiological stress responses, we compared stress-sensitive Wistar Kyoto (WKY) rats to the normoanxious
Sprague Dawley (SD) strain. Here we report that acute stress-induced strain-specifc changes
in brain lipid metabolites were a prominent feature in WKY rats. The relative abundance of Lactococcus
correlated with the relative proportions of many brain lipids. In contrast, plasma lipids were signifcantly
elevated in response to stress in SD rats, but not in WKY rats. Supporting these fndings, we found that
the greatest diference between the SD and WKY microbiomes were the predicted relative abundance
of microbial genes involved in lipid and energy metabolism. Our results provide potential insights for
developing novel biomarkers of stress vulnerability, some of which appear genotype specifc.