Dynamics of predominant microbiota in the human ga

Authors: Atanu Adak Chiranjit Maity Kuntal Ghosh Bikas Ranjan Pati Keshab Chandra Mondal

Publish Date: 2013/03/28

Volume: 58, Issue: 6, Pages: 523-528

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Abstract

Highaltitude HA visitors like pilgrims trackers scientists and military personnel face a group of nonspecific gastrointestinal GI symptoms during acclimatization to hypobaric hypoxia In order to investigate the alteration of indigenous gastrointestinal microbiota in the development of such GI symptoms an experiment was conducted for the enumeration of dominant cultivable faecal microbiota of 15 soldiers at base level Delhi and during their 15day acclimatization at 3505 m HA Leh At HA faecal microbiota analysis revealed that total aerobes decreased significantly with increase of total and facultative anaerobes The strict anaerobes like Bifidobacterium sp Bacteroidetes sp and Lactobacillus sp exhibited positive growth direction index GDI like other predominant obligate anaerobes Clostridium perfringens and Peptostreptococcus sp Different enzymes like amylase proteinase and polyphenol hydrolase produced by different bacterial populations showed positive GDI whereas phosphatase producers exhibited negative GDI The levels of microbeoriginated enzymes like amylase proteinase alkaline phosphatase and βglucuronidase were also elevated during HA acclimatization In addition in vitro gas production ability was enhanced with increase of faecal immunoglobulins IgA and IgG We demonstrated that hypoxic environment at HA had the potential to alter the gut microbial composition and its activities that may cause GI dysfunctionsWe are thankful to the Defence Institute of Physiology Allied Sciences TC/336/Task160KCM/DIPAS/2009 for their financial support to carry out this work The author AA DSTINSPIRE fellow IF10334 is grateful to Department of Science and Technology India Sanction no DST/INSPIRE Fellowship/2010/209 dated 27 January 2011 for supporting with the fellowship

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