Abstract
The intestinal microbiota is significantly affected by the external environment, but our understanding of the effects of extreme environments such as plateaus is far from adequate. In this study, we systematically analyzed the variation in the intestinal microbiota and 76 blood clinical indexes among 393 healthy adults with different plateau living durations (Han individuals with no plateau living, with plateau living for 4 to 6 days, with plateau living for >3 months, and who returned to the plain for 3 months, as well as plateau-living Tibetans). The results showed that the high-altitude environment rapidly (4 days) and continually (more than 3 months) shaped both the intestinal microbiota and clinical indexes of the Han population. With prolongation of plateau living, the general characteristics of the intestinal microbiota and clinical indexes of the Han population were increasingly similar to those of the Tibetan population. The intestinal microbiota of the Han population that returned to the plain area for 3 months still resembled that of the plateau-living Han population rather than that of the Han population on the plain. Moreover, clinical indexes such as blood glucose were significantly lower in the plateau groups than in the nonplateau groups, while the opposite result was obtained for testosterone. Interestingly, there were Tibetan-specific correlations between glucose levels and Succinivibrio and Sarcina abundance in the intestine. The results of this study suggest that a hypoxic environment could rapidly and lastingly affect both the human intestinal microbiota and blood clinical indexes, providing new insights for the study of plateau adaptability.IMPORTANCE The data presented in the present study demonstrate that the hypoxic plateau environment has a profound impact on the gut microbiota and blood clinical indexes in Han and Tibetan individuals. The plateau-changed signatures of the gut microbiota and blood clinical indexes were not restored to the nonplateau status in the Han cohorts, even when the individuals returned to the plain from the plateau for several months. Our study will improve the understanding of the great impact of hypoxic environments on the gut microbiota and blood clinical indexes as well as the adaptation mechanism and intervention targets for plateau adaptation.
Highlights
IMPORTANCE The data presented in the present study demonstrate that the hypoxic plateau environment has a profound impact on the gut microbiota and blood clinical indexes in Han and Tibetan individuals
We conducted a cross-sectional comparison between the gut microbiota and clinical indexes of Han individuals living on the plain (Han1k), those who stayed on the plateau for a few days (Han4k_4d and Han4k_6d) or for more than 3 months (Han4k), and those who returned to the plain for 3 months after Ͼ3 months of plateau living (Han4k_b3m) as well as those of local Tibetans on the plateau (Tibetan4k)
Chinese individuals, comprising 96 Han individuals (Han1k group) who lived on the plain, 21 Han individuals who stayed on the Tibetan Plateau for 4 days (Han4k_4d group), 40 Han individuals who stayed on the Tibetan Plateau for 6 days (Han4k_6d group), 50 Han individuals who stayed on the Tibetan Plateau for more than 3 months msystems.asm.org 2
Summary
IMPORTANCE The data presented in the present study demonstrate that the hypoxic plateau environment has a profound impact on the gut microbiota and blood clinical indexes in Han and Tibetan individuals. The dominant gut bacteria in Tibetans living in different regions of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau were Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes, Proteobacteria, and Actinobacteria at the phylum level, and facultative anaerobes prevailed in Tibetans [8]. These studies suggest that altitude and culture significantly influence the composition of the gut microbiota; there is still no report on the changes in the microbiota and the physiological indicators for individuals entering and leaving the plateau. The study will provide new research objects for mechanistic studies and intervention targets for plateau adaptation
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