Metabolic diseases alone would most likely overwhelm the public health and medical systems in these countries if nothing substantial happen in prevention and treatment of these diseases in the following decade. A paradigm shift which has occurred in the last decade or so in understanding the root cause of human metabolic diseases may bring new hope to countries devastated by such diseases, i.e. the studies of gut microbiome contribution to onset and progression of metabolic diseases, particularly adiposity and insulin resistance, the two hallmark characteristics of various metabolic diseases in their early stages. A pivotal role of the whole gut microbiota in metabolic disorders has been demonstrated in mice and humans but the specific functionally relevant members need to be identified at the strain-level. For example, one non-virulent strain in the opportunistic pathogen species Enterobacter cloacae was isolated from an obese human gut and shown to induce obesity in germfree mice possibly by inducing inflammation via its endotoxin. Such strain level dissection of gut microbiota contribution to human metabolic diseases can be further facilitated via a metagenomics-metabolomics integrated approach. Time series urine and fecal samples can be taken during a clinical intervention. Multi-omics approach has the potential to become a powerful strategy for identifying specific gut bacteria functionally important in various chronic diseases. 

Time

2021.11.24 12:00-13:30

Venue

ZIRC (multi-function room on the 4th floor of Siyuan Building)

Speaker

Professor Chenhong Zhang

School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, SJTU

Questions:

1、What is your opinion of “supraorganisms”?

2、Can we modulate the microbiome to improve human health and How?