Characterizing Gut Microbiota in Older Chinese Adults with Cognitive Impairment: A Cross-Sectional Study

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Wang, Jing^a | Zhang, Gong^b | Lai, Hao^a | Li, Zengbin^a | Shen, Mingwang^{a; c} | Li, Chao^d | Kwan, Patrick^e | O’Brien, Terence J.^e | Wu, Ting^f | Yang, Siyu^f | Zhang, Xueli^{g; h} | Zhang, Lei^{a; e; i; *}

Affiliations: [a] China-Australia Joint Research Centre for Infectious Diseases, School of Public Health, Xi’an Jiaotong University Health Science Centre, Xi’an, Shaanxi, PR China | [b] MOE Key Laboratory of Tumour Molecular Biology and Key Laboratory of Functional Protein Research of Guangdong Higher Education Institutes, Institute of Life and Health Engineering, College of Life Science and Technology, Jinan University, Guangzhou, China | [c] Key Laboratory for Disease Prevention and Control and Health Promotion of Shaanxi Province, Xi’an, Shaanxi, China | [d] Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, School of Public Health, Xi’an Jiaotong University Health Science Centre, Xi’an, China | [e] The Department of Neuroscience, The School of Translational Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences, Monash University & Alfred Health, Melbourne, Australia | [f] Department of Neurology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China | [g] Department of Ophthalmology, Guangdong Eye Institute, Guangdong Provincial People’s Hospital (Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences), Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China | [h] Medical Research Institute, Guangdong Provincial People’s Hospital (Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences), Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China | [i] Artificial Intelligence and Modelling in Epidemiology Program, Melbourne Sexual Health Centre, Alfred Health, Melbourne, Australia

Correspondence: [*] Correspondence to: Lei Zhang, China-Australia Joint Research Centre for Infectious Diseases, School of Public Health, Xi’an Jiaotong University Health Science Centre, Xi’an, Shaanxi, 710061, PR China. Tel.: +86 15910593477; E-mail: lei.zhang1@monash.edu.

Abstract: Background:Cognitive impairment is a clinical manifestation that occurs in the course of dementia like Alzheimer’s disease. The association between cognitive impairment and gut microbiota is unclear. Objective:We aimed to identify gut microbiota characteristics and key gut microbiota biomarkers associated with cognitive impairment in a relatively large cohort of older adults in China. Methods:A total of 229 adults aged ≥60 years from Shenzhen, China were recruited into this cross-sectional study. Participants were divided into cognitive impairment (CI) and no cognitive impairment (NCI) groups according to the results of the Mini-Mental State Examination. Diversity analysis and network analysis were used to characterize the gut microbiota between the two groups. The linear discriminant analysis effect size method and machine learning approaches were sequentially performed to identify gut microbiota biomarkers. The relationship between biomarkers and lifestyle factors was explored using Transformation-based redundancy analysis (tb-RDA). Results:A total of 74 CI participants and 131 NCI participants were included in the analysis. The CI group demonstrated lower α-diversity compared to the NCI group (Shannon: 2.798 versus 3.152, p < 0.001). The density of the gut microbiota interaction network was lower in the CI group (0.074) compared to the NCI group (0.081). Megamonas, Blautia, Pseudomonas, Stenotrophomonas, and Veillonella were key biomarkers for CI. The tb-RDA revealed that increased fruit intake and exercise contribute to a higher abundance of Megamonas, Blautia, and Veillonella. Conclusions:We identified a significantly reduced abundance of certain beneficial gut microbiota in older Chinese adults with cognitive impairment.

Keywords: Alzheimer’s disease, biomarker, cognitive impairment, gut microbiota, lifestyle factors, older adults, Random forest

DOI: 10.3233/JAD-240597

Journal: Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, vol. 101, no. 3, pp. 761-771, 2024