| description |
It is unclear how to ensure that the gut microbiota of individuals with disparate dietary practices (DPs) respond consistently to prescribed dietary interventions. To address this, we identified DP-associated gut bacterial taxa in individuals either practicing chronic calorie restriction with adequate nutrition (CRON) or without dietary restrictions (AMER). Transplanted into gnotobiotic mice, AMER and CRON microbiota responded predictably to CRON and AMER diets but with variable response strength. Individual microbiota exist within a population of host communities (metacommunity) connected by microbial exchange. Sequentially cohousing AMER-colonized mice with two different groups of CRON-colonized mice emulated metacommunity effects, resulting in enhanced responses to a CRON diet intervention and changes in several metabolic features in AMER animals. This response was driven by an influx of CRON DP-associated taxa. Certain DPs may impair responses to dietary interventions, necessitating introduction of absent diet-responsive bacterial lineages present in other individuals and identified using the strategies described. |