Abstract
Few data exist on the human gut mycobiome in relation to lifestyle, ethnicity, and dietary habits. To understand the effect of these factors on the structure of the human gut mycobiome, we analyzed sequences belonging to two extinct pre-Columbian cultures inhabiting Puerto Rico (the Huecoid and Saladoid) and compared them to coprolite samples found in Mexico and Ötzi, the Iceman’s large intestine. Stool mycobiome samples from extant populations in Peru and urban cultures from the United States were also included. The ancient Puerto Rican cultures exhibited a lower fungal diversity in comparison to the extant populations. Dissimilarity distances showed that the Huecoid gut mycobiome resembled that from ancient Mexico. Fungal genera including Aspergillus spp., Penicillium spp., Rasamsonia spp., Byssochlamys spp., Talaromyces spp., Blastomyces spp., Monascus spp., and Penicilliopsis spp. were differentially abundant in the ancient and extant populations. Despite cultural differences, certain fungal taxa were present in all samples. These results suggest that culture and diet may impact the gut mycobiome and emphasize that modern lifestyles could be associated with the alteration of gut mycobiome diversity. The present study presents data on ancient and extant human gut mycobiomes in terms of lifestyle, ethnicity, and diet in the Americas.
Highlights
Published: 16 February 2022Humans have coevolved with their gut microbiome, which plays an essential role in human health and well-being
We found that the α-diversity as well as the composition and structure distinguished the ancient from extant populations
We found that the ancient populations (Huecoid, Saladoid and Mexican and The Iceman) exhibited a lower α-diversity in comparison to extant populations (Matses, Tunapuco and United States) (Mann–Whitney U-test, p-value < 0.001) (Figure S1)
Summary
Humans have coevolved with their gut microbiome, which plays an essential role in human health and well-being. The human and other animal gut microbiomes may be affected by factors such as geography, lifestyle, genetics, environment, and diet [1–5]. Diversity in intestinal fungi (both transient as well as intrinsic, referred to as the mycobiome) is being revealed. Recent studies have shown that modern lifestyles may result in a decreased diversity of the bacteriome and may have an impact on metabolic and immune diseases [6–8]. There is an information gap on the impact modern lifestyles and ethnicity may have on the gut mycobiome composition. The human gut mycobiome of Westernized cultures seems to be mainly composed of the genera Saccharomyces, Malassezia, and Candida, with the species Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Malassezia restricta, and Candida albicans dominating the human stool samples tested [9]
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