Ketonuria Is Associated with Changes to the Abundance of <i>Roseburia</i> in the Gut Microbiota of Overweight and Obese Women at 16 Weeks Gestation: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study

• Main Authors: Helen Robinson, Helen Barrett, Luisa Gomez-Arango, H. David McIntyre, Leonie Callaway, Marloes Dekker Nitert
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2019-08-01
• Series: Nutrients
• Subjects: microbiome; pregnancy; obesity; ketonuria; <i>Roseburia</i>
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/11/8/1836

The gut microbiome in pregnancy has been associated with various maternal metabolic and hormonal markers involved in glucose metabolism. Maternal ketones are of particular interest due to the rise in popularity of low-carbohydrate diets. We assessed for differences in the composition of the gut microbiota in pregnant women with and without ketonuria at 16 weeks gestation. Fecal samples were obtained from 11 women with fasting ketonuria and 11 matched controls. The samples were analyzed to assess for differences in gut microbiota composition by 16S rRNA sequencing. Supervised hierarchical clustering analysis showed significantly different beta-diversity between women with and without ketonuria, but no difference in the alpha-diversity. Group comparisons and network analysis showed that ketonuria was associated with an increased abundance of the butyrate-producing genus <i>Roseburia.</i> The bacteria that contributed the most to the differences in the composition of the gut microbiota included <i>Roseburia</i>, <i>Methanobrevibacter</i>, <i>Uncl. RF39,</i> and <i>Dialister</i> in women with ketonuria and <i>Eggerthella</i>, <i>Phascolarctobacterium</i>, <i>Butyricimonas,</i> and <i>Uncl. Coriobacteriaceae</i> in women without ketonuria. This study found that the genus <i>Roseburia</i> is more abundant in the gut microbiota of pregnant women with ketonuria. <i>Roseburia</i> is a butyrate producing bacterium and may increase serum ketone levels.