Association of Diet Quality Measured by Three A Priori-Defined Dietary Patterns With Gut Microbiota and Intestinal Permeability Among Obese Individuals

The human gastrointestinal tract (GI) may play a critical role in the prevention of obesity and metabolic diseases. Considering the importance of a healthy diet for optimal health, this study examined associations of diet quality assessed by three a priori-defined dietary patterns (Healthy Eating Index 2010 [HEI-2010], Mediterranean Eating Pattern for Americans [MEPA], and Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension [DASH] with gut microbiota, short-chain fatty acids (SCFA) and intestinal permeability markers in adult obese participants. Analyses utilized baseline data from 103 obese subjects (43.8 ± 11.3 years, body mass index ≥30 kg/m2, 72.8% females, 64.1% blacks) who participated in a probiotic/prebiotic supplement trial. Diet was assessed using a validated food frequency questionnaire. Associations of diet quality with outcome measures were assessed using partial correlation coefficient adjusting for relevant covariates. General linear models (GLM) were applied to compare covariate-adjusted means of outcomes for tertiles of respective dietary patterns scores. Scores of HEI-2010 (r = 0.25, P = 0.02), MEPA (r = 0.24, P = 0.03) and DASH (r = 0.28, PP = 0.008) were positively associated with Blautia abundance. HEI-2010 score was positively associated butyrate and propionate to total SCFA ratio (r = 0.24, P = 0.048). Intestinal permeability marker, urinary 24-hr sucralose levels were inversely associated with HEI-2010 (r= −0.30, P = 0.009) and MEPA (r= −0.26, P = 0.02) score. The results were similar when GLM models were performed. No significant associations were observed between scores of dietary patterns and measures of microbial diversity. Blautia abundance and inversely associated with intestinal permeability markers such as urinary 24-h sucralose levels suggesting diet quality may have positive impact on the human GI community. No funding support.