Plasticity of the adult human small intestinal stoma microbiota

• Published in: Cell host & microbe Vol. 30; no. 12; pp. 1773 - 1787.e6
• Main Authors: Yilmaz, Bahtiyar, Fuhrer, Tobias, Morgenthaler, Deborah, Krupka, Niklas, Wang, Daoming, Spari, Daniel, Candinas, Daniel, Misselwitz, Benjamin, Beldi, Guido, Sauer, Uwe, Macpherson, Andrew J.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Elsevier Inc 14.12.2022
• Subjects: Adult; bacterial biomass; Colon - microbiology; colostomy; Gastrointestinal Microbiome; Humans; ileostomy; Ileum - microbiology; Intestine, Small; metabolomics; microbial instability; Microbiota; small intestinal microbiota; sub-strains; colostomy; bacterial biomass; metabolomics; small intestinal microbiota; sub-strains; ileostomy; microbial instability
• ISSN: 1931-3128; 1934-6069
• DOI: 10.1016/j.chom.2022.10.002

The human distal small intestine (ileum) has a distinct microbiota, but human studies investigating its composition and function have been limited by the inaccessibility of the ileum without purging and/or deep intubation. We investigated inherent instability, temporal dynamics, and the contribution of fed and fasted states using stoma samples from cured colorectal cancer patients as a non-invasive access route to the otherwise inaccessible small and large intestines. Sequential sampling of the ileum before and after stoma formation indicated that ileostoma microbiotas represented that of the intact small intestine. Ileal and colonic stoma microbiotas were confirmed as distinct, and two types of instability in ileal host-microbial relationships were observed: inter-digestive purging followed by the rapid postprandial blooming of bacterial biomass and sub-strain appearance and disappearance within individual taxa after feeding. In contrast to the relative stability of colonic microbiota, the human small intestinal microbiota biomass and its sub-strain composition can be highly dynamic. [Display omitted] •IIeal stoma microbiotas represent those of the small intestine before surgery•The biomass of the small intestinal microbiota increases within hours of feeding•Sub-strain proportions within individual ileal microbial taxa fluctuate over time Yilmaz et al. report that ileostoma microbiotas represent the intact small intestine before stoma formation. This resource allows access to study human distal small intestinal microbiotas and metabolites. Ileal microbiotas can dynamically adapt to changing intraluminal ecological conditions with very rapid sub-strain appearance and disappearance and substantial bacterial biomass fluctuations.