Gut microbiota associations with common diseases and prescription medications in a population-based cohort

TLDR

The human gut microbiome is linked to many health factors, yet variability across studies hampers cross‑study comparisons. The study presents gut microbiota association analyses for 38 diseases and 51 medications, identifies novel and shared associations, and ranks those with strongest microbiome links. The authors used gut microbiota profiles from over 2,700 TwinsUK participants to enable uniform association analyses. The analyses uncovered novel and shared disease‑medication microbiome associations and provide a reference for future research into gut microbiome health impacts.

Abstract

The human gut microbiome has been associated with many health factors but variability between studies limits exploration of effects between them. Gut microbiota profiles are available for >2700 members of the deeply phenotyped TwinsUK cohort, providing a uniform platform for such comparisons. Here, we present gut microbiota association analyses for 38 common diseases and 51 medications within the cohort. We describe several novel associations, highlight associations common across multiple diseases, and determine which diseases and medications have the greatest association with the gut microbiota. These results provide a reference for future studies of the gut microbiome and its role in human health.