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ARS Home » Plains Area » Houston, Texas » Children's Nutrition Research Center » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #342654
Title: Environmental enteric dysfunction and the fecal microbiota in Malawian children

Author
item ORDIZ, M - Washington University School Of Medicine
item STEPHENSON, KEVIN - Washington University School Of Medicine
item AGAPOVA, SOPHIA - Washington University School Of Medicine
item WYLIE, KRISTINE - Washington University School Of Medicine
item MALETA, KEN - University Of Malawi
item MARTIN, JOHN - Washington University School Of Medicine
item TREHAN, INDI - Washington University School Of Medicine
item TARR, PHILLIP - Washington University School Of Medicine
item MANARY, MARK - Children'S Nutrition Research Center (CNRC)

Submitted to: American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 10/23/2016
Publication Date: 2/8/2017
Citation: Ordiz, M.I., Stephenson, K., Agapova, S., Wylie, K.M., Maleta, K., Martin, J., Trehan, I., Tarr, P.I., Manary, M.J. 2017. Environmental enteric dysfunction and the fecal microbiota in Malawian children. American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. 96(2):473-476.

Interpretive Summary: Poor gut health, a condition thought to be a plausible cause of stunting, is commonly identified with a sugar absorption test that measures the ability of two sugar molecules to pass through the lining of the small intestine. This sugar absorption test was given and fecal samples were collected randomly from healthy rural Malawian children participating in a legume intervention trial and the fecal samples were analyzed by level of gut health determined by the sugar test to investigate which bacteria were associated with gut health. The results showed that gut health wasn't associated with any profound evidence of impaired fecal gut flora, but there were six types of bacteria identified as having different quantities of which is a significant finding could lead to further identification of underlying causes of gut health and help identify those who may be at risk for stunting.

Technical Abstract: Environmental enteric dysfunction (EED) is often measured with a dual sugar absorption test and implicated as a causative factor in childhood stunting. Disturbances in the gut microbiota are hypothesized to be a mechanism by which EED is exacerbated, although this supposition lacks support. We performed 16S ribosomal RNA gene sequencing of fecal samples from 81 rural Malawian children with varying degrees of EED to determine which bacterial taxa were associated with EED. At the phyla level, Proteobacteria abundance is reduced with severe EED. Among bacterial genera, Megasphaera, Mitsuokella, and Sutterella were higher in EED and Succinivibrio, Klebsiella, and Clostridium_XI were lower in EED. Bacterial diversity did not vary with the extent of EED. Though EED is a condition that is typically believed to affect the proximal small bowel, and our focus was on stool, our data do suggest that there are intraluminal microbial differences that reflect, or plausibly lead to, EED.