In a large study, researchers in Sweden established an association between the number of specific bacteria in the gut and coronary atherosclerotic plaques. Atherosclerotic plaques, which result from fatty and cholesterol deposits, are a major cause of heart attacks. The findings of the study, led by academics from Uppsala and Lund University, have recently been published in the scientific journal Circulation.
The new study was based on an analysis of gut bacteria and cardiac imaging among 8,973 participants aged 50 to 65 from Uppsala and Malmö who did not have previously known heart disease. They were all participants in the Swedish Cardiopulmonary Bioimage Study (SCAPIS).
“We found that oral bacteria, particularly species of the Streptococcus genus, are associated with an increased incidence of atherosclerotic plaques in the small arteries of the heart when present in the gut flora. Species of the Streptococcus genus are common causes of pneumonia and infections of the throat, skin, and heart valves. We now need to understand whether these bacteria are contributing to the development of atherosclerosis,” says Tove Fall, professor of molecular epidemiology at Uppsala University’s Department of Medical Sciences and SciLifelab, who led the study together with researchers from Lund University. coordinated.
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Advances in technology have enabled large-scale deep characterization of bacterial communities in biological samples by sequencing DNA material and comparing it to known bacterial sequences.
Additionally, improvements in imaging techniques have enabled early changes in the small vessels of the heart to be detected and measured. The SCAPIS study represents one of the world’s largest collections of both of these types of data. In this study, scientists examined the relationship between gut microbiota and fatty deposits in the arteries of the heart.
“The large number of samples combined with high-quality data from cardiac imaging and gut flora allowed us to identify novel associations. Among our most important findings, Streptococcus anginosus and S. Oralis subsp. orlis were the strongest of the two,” says lead author Sergi Sayols-Baixeras of Uppsala University.
The research team also found that some of the species associated with fat deposits in the heart arteries were associated with levels of the same species in the mouth. It was measured using faecal and saliva samples collected from the Malmö Offspring Study and the Malmö Offspring Dental Study.
Furthermore, even after accounting for differences in diet and medication between participants who had the bacteria and those who did not, these bacteria were associated with markers of inflammation in the blood.
“We are just beginning to understand how the human host and the bacterial communities in different parts of the body influence each other. Our study shows worse cardiovascular health in carriers of streptococci in their gut. We now need to investigate whether these bacteria are important players in the development of atherosclerosis,” says Marju Orho-Melander, professor of genetic epidemiology at Lund University and one of the study’s senior authors.