Abstract
An essential role of the gut microbiota in health and disease is strongly suggested by recent research. The composition of the gut microbiota is modified by multiple internal and external factors, such as diet. A vegan diet is known to show beneficial health effects, yet the role of the gut microbiota is unclear. Within a 4-week, monocentric, randomized, controlled trial with a parallel group design (vegan (VD) vs. meat-rich (MD)) with 53 healthy, omnivore, normal-weight participants (62% female, mean 31 years of age), fecal samples were collected at the beginning and at the end of the trial and were analyzed using 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing (Clinical Trial register: DRKS00011963). Alpha diversity as well as beta diversity did not differ significantly between MD and VD. Plotting of baseline and end samples emphasized a highly intra-individual microbial composition. Overall, the gut microbiota was not remarkably altered between VD and MD after the trial. Coprococcus was found to be increased in VD while being decreased in MD. Roseburia and Faecalibacterium were increased in MD while being decreased in VD. Importantly, changes in genera Coprococcus, Roseburia and Faecalibacterium should be subjected to intense investigation as markers for physical and mental health.
Highlights
The gut microbiota is the entirety of all gastrointestinal microorganisms resident in the human gastrointestinal tract [1,2]
Twenty-six participants were allocated to vegan diet (VD) and 27 participants were allocated to meat-rich diet (MD) for four weeks
Intake of energy and of fat measured by self-reported nutritional protocol during the trial did not differ significantly between VD and MD
Summary
The gut microbiota is the entirety of all gastrointestinal microorganisms (bacteria, viruses, protozoa and fungi) resident in the human gastrointestinal tract [1,2]. An essential role of the gut microbiota in health and disease is strongly suggested by recent research [3,4,5]. Microorganisms 2021, 9, 727 microbiota-associated diseases [12,13] Some diets, such as a vegan diet, are known to show beneficial health effects—for example, improvements in cardiovascular risk factors and decreases in inflammatory markers—but it remains unclear whether these effects are gut microbiota-driven or not [14,15,16,17,18]. The comparability of trials evaluating the long-term effect of VD is very limited as the composition of the gut microbiota is affected by diet and by origin, sex, age, and pre-existing illnesses, among other factors [1,2]
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