Abstract
Background
Previous evidence suggests that gut dysbiosis plays an important role in the development and progression of sarcopenia and sarcopenic obesity, but evidence supporting this association is lacking. Thus, this study aimed to investigate the characteristics of gut microbiota in older people with sarcopenia and sarcopenic obesity.
Methods
The study involved 60 elderly individuals aged 65 years or older, recruited from Chongming, Shanghai, China. Participants were categorized into three groups based on the Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia 2019 (AWGS 2019) and World Health Organization obesity guidelines: sarcopenic obesity (SO, n = 20), sarcopenic without obesity (Sar, n = 18), and control (Con, n = 22). The gut microbiota was analyzed by sequencing the V3-V4 regions of the 16S rRNA gene.
Results
Significant differences in the diversity and composition of the gut microbiota were observed in Sar and SO groups. A reduction in alpha diversity, as measured by Chao1 and ACE index, was found in the SO group. Beta diversity based on unweighted Unifrac was significantly different between SO, Sar, and Con groups. Bacterial community composition analysis showed that at the family and genus level, the relative abundance of Rikenellaceae, Christensenellacea, Alistipes, Christensenellaceae R-7 group, Ruminococcus, and Odoribacter were significantly abundant in Sar group, whereas Enterobacteriaceae was more enriched in the SO group. Furthermore, as revealed by linear discriminant analysis effect size (LEfSe) and receiver operating curve (ROC) analysis, Alistipes and Christensenellaceae R-7 group was identified as biomarker for the diagnosis of sarcopenia without obesity, and Enterobacteriaceae was identified as a biomarker for the diagnosis of sarcopenic obesity.
Conclusion
This study demonstrated that the gut microbiota of sarcopenic obesity and sarcopenia without obesity have distinct diversity and composition profiles. The results provide new insights into the role of the gut microbiota in sarcopenic obesity, highlighting the potential of gut microbiota as a therapeutic target in this condition.