Environmental Pollutant Benzo[ a ]Pyrene Impacts the Volatile Metabolome and Transcriptome of the Human Gut Microbiota

• Published in: Frontiers in microbiology Vol. 8; p. 1562
• Main Authors: Defois, Clémence, Ratel, Jérémy, Denis, Sylvain, Batut, Bérénice, Beugnot, Réjane, Peyretaillade, Eric, Engel, Erwan, Peyret, Pierre
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland Frontiers Media 15-08-2017; Frontiers Media S.A
• Subjects: 16S amplicon sequencing; Bacteriology; Food and Nutrition; human gut microbiota; Life Sciences; metatranscriptomics; Microbiology; Microbiology and Parasitology; polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons; volatolomics; human gut microbiota; volatolomics; polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons; metatranscriptomics; 16S amplicon sequencing; metatranscriptomic; volatolomic
• ISSN: 1664-302X; 1664-302X
• DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2017.01562

Benzo[
]pyrene (B[
]P) is a ubiquitous, persistent, and carcinogenic pollutant that belongs to the large family of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. Population exposure primarily occurs via contaminated food products, which introduces the pollutant to the digestive tract. Although the metabolism of B[
]P by host cells is well known, its impacts on the human gut microbiota, which plays a key role in health and disease, remain unexplored. We performed an
assay using 16S barcoding, metatranscriptomics and volatile metabolomics to study the impact of B[
]P on two distinct human fecal microbiota. B[
]P exposure did not induce a significant change in the microbial structure; however, it altered the microbial volatolome in a dose-dependent manner. The transcript levels related to several metabolic pathways, such as vitamin and cofactor metabolism, cell wall compound metabolism, DNA repair and replication systems, and aromatic compound metabolism, were upregulated, whereas the transcript levels related to the glycolysis-gluconeogenesis pathway and bacterial chemotaxis toward simple carbohydrates were downregulated. These primary findings show that food pollutants, such as B[
]P, alter human gut microbiota activity. The observed shift in the volatolome demonstrates that B[
]P induces a specific deviation in the microbial metabolism.