Altered Gut Microbiota in a Mouse Model of Alzheimer’s Disease

作者：Ling Zhang, Ying Wang, Xiayu Xia, Changhua Shi, Wei Chen, Nan Song, Xinjing Fu, Rui Zhou, Yanfeng Xu, Lan Huang, Hua Zhu, Yunlin Han, Chuan Qin · 发表于：Journal of Alzheimer s Disease · 年份：2017 · DOI：10.3233/jad-170020 · 被引用次数：460 · 研究领域：Gut microbiota and health、Diet and metabolism studies、Tryptophan and brain disorders

The topic of gut microbiota is currently attracting considerable interest as a potential factor in Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, the extent and time course of alterations in the gut microbiota, and their effects on AD pathology remain uncertain. Herein, we compared the fecal microbiomes and fecal short chain fatty acid composition (SCFAs) between wild-type and AD model mice at different ages under strictly controlled specific pathogen free conditions, and also conducted microscopic investigations of intestinal structures. Our results showed that the microbiota composition and diversity were perturbed and the level of SCFAs was reduced in AD mice, predicting alterations in more than 30 metabolic pathways, which may be associated with amyloid deposition and ultrastructural abnormalities in AD mouse intestine. These findings indicate that AD pathology might not only affect brain function directly, but also exacerbate cognitive deficits through reducing the level of SCFAs via alterations of gut microbiota induced by intestinal amyloid deposition. Our data may support a role of gut microbiota, and suggest a novel route for therapeutic intervention in AD.