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Response of the human gut and saliva microbiome to urbanization in Cameroon.

Published version
Peer-reviewed

Type

Article

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Authors

Aflalo, Sophie 
Amougou, Norbert 
Lafosse, Sophie 
Froment, Alain 

Abstract

Urban populations from highly industrialized countries are characterized by a lower gut bacterial diversity as well as by changes in composition compared to rural populations from less industrialized countries. To unveil the mechanisms and factors leading to this diversity loss, it is necessary to identify the factors associated with urbanization-induced shifts at a smaller geographical scale, especially in less industrialized countries. To do so, we investigated potential associations between a variety of dietary, medical, parasitological and socio-cultural factors and the gut and saliva microbiomes of 147 individuals from three populations along an urbanization gradient in Cameroon. We found that the presence of Entamoeba sp., a commensal gut protozoan, followed by stool consistency, were major determinants of the gut microbiome diversity and composition. Interestingly, urban individuals have retained most of their gut eukaryotic and bacterial diversity despite significant changes in diet compared to the rural areas, suggesting that the loss of bacterial microbiome diversity observed in industrialized areas is likely associated with medication. Finally, we observed a weak positive correlation between the gut and the saliva microbiome diversity and composition, even though the saliva microbiome is mainly shaped by habitat-related factors.

Description

Keywords

Adolescent, Adult, Aged, Bacteria, Cameroon, Diet, Entamoeba, Feces, Female, Gastrointestinal Microbiome, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Saliva, Urban Population, Urbanization, Young Adult

Journal Title

Sci Rep

Conference Name

Journal ISSN

2045-2322
2045-2322

Volume Title

10

Publisher

Springer Science and Business Media LLC