Alterations of the gut microbiome are associated with epigenetic age acceleration and physical fitness

Abstract

AbstractEpigenetic clocks can measure aging and predict the incidence of diseases and mortality. Higher levels of physical fitness are associated with a slower aging process and a healthier lifespan. Microbiome alterations occur in various diseases and during the aging process, yet their relation to epigenetic clocks is not explored. To fill this gap, we collected metagenomic, epigenetic and exercise-related data from physically fit individuals and applying epigenetic clocks, we examined the relationship between gut flora, epigenetic age acceleration and physical fitness. We revealed that an increased entropy in the gut microbiome is associated with accelerated epigenetic aging, lower fitness or impaired health status. We also observed that, in general, accelerated epigenetic aging can be linked to the abundance of pro-inflammatory and other pathogenic bacteria and decelerated epigenetic aging or high fitness level can be linked to the abundance of anti-inflammatory bacteria. Overall our data suggest that alterations in the microbiome can be associated with epigenetic age acceleration and physical fitness.