Potential of Establishing the Corresponding Human Microbial Community in Pseudo Germ-Free Mice through Fecal Microbe Transfer from Three Urolithin Metabotypes

Three urolithin metabotypes (UMs) have been defined in the population according to final urolithins converted by gut microbiota. Currently, it is difficult to establish the cause-and-effect relationship between urolithins and microbiota in human studies. Studies on the health effects of ellagic acid (EA) in animal models rarely consider the differences in the urolithin production. Therefore, the objective of this study is to establish human microbiota-associated (HMA) mice, imitating the microbiota composition of the three UMs. Antibiotic-induced pseudo germ-free mice were gavaged with fecal bacteria of the three UM donors for four weeks. The results showed that the ability to produce corresponding urolithins was successfully transferred from the donor of the three UMs to HMA mice. The three UM HMA mice adopted a humanized microbiota profile similar to their corresponding donor. The family Eggerthellaceae and genera Eggerthella and Gordonibacter were successfully transferred and colonized from UM-A/B donors to HMA mice. Overall, the three UM HMA mouse models were successfully established, which provide a basis for exploring the health effects of EA.

Automated summary

Three urolithin metabotypes (UMs) have been defined in the population based on the final urolithins produced by gut microbiota. This study successfully established human microbiota-associated (HMA) mice mimicking the microbiota composition of the three UMs. The ability to produce urolithins was transferred from the UM donors to the HMA mice, and the resulting microbiota profile of the HMA mice closely resembled that of their corresponding donors.