Cover Story Current Issue

Glucose is a ubiquitous and essential source of energy for all living organisms. Although mammals have evolved ways to convert other nutritional molecules to ATP, the preference for dietary glucose appears to be preserved. In rodents, the immediate detection of ingested glucose potently reinforces intake, hierarchically organizing behaviors towards glucose-yielding substances, and away from other types of food including other sugars. Taste is the primary sense linked to nutrient selection. Until recently, it was thought that most mammalian species utilize a single broadly tuned receptor to detect all simple sugars. Indeed, this “sweet” receptor, which comprises a heterodimer of the T1R2 and T1R3 proteins, binds multiple natural sugars (e.g., glucose, fructose, sucrose, maltose), as well as various other chemicals that yield little to no energy (e.g., low calorie sweeteners, sugar alcohols) and some d-amino acids. The neural signal originating from the sweet receptor is hardwired into brain circuits that drive eating and drinking behaviors, but it is an unreliable indicator of nutrient quality and quantity.

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Current Issue

The role of the gut non-bacterial microbiome (virome, mycobiome, archaeome) and its impact on obesity

Koy Min Chue, Sunny Hei Wong, Tao Zuo, Yusuf Ali

The role of the gut non-bacterial microbiome (virome, mycobiome, archaeome) and its impact on obesity

The epidemic of obesity and metabolic syndrome is a major public health concern internationally. There is increasing knowledge and research in areas of appetite regulation and drivers of obesity but there is still a gap on how the interactomes are altered in a metabolically dysregulated human body. The human microbiome has been implicated in the pathogenesis of obesity. While the association of gut bacteriome dysbiosis is well described in obesity and metabolic syndrome, there is a lack of an integrative understanding about the roles of the non-bacterial microbiome (virome, mycobiome, and archaeome) in the pathogenesis and protection of obesity and metabolic syndrome. Accumulating studies have revealed that the non-bacterial microbes in the gut, including viruses/phages, fungi, and archaea, are profoundly altered in obesity, and impact host adiposity and physiology in nuanced manners. In this review, we aim to provide a comprehensive view on the role and the mechanisms of the gut virome, mycobiome, and archaeome in obesity. These insights will shed light on the translational value as well as the future research directions for harnessing the gut non-bacterial microbial entities in the therapeutics and prevention of metabolic diseases.

Articles in Press

The role of the gut non-bacterial microbiome (virome, mycobiome, archaeome) and its impact on obesity

Koy Min Chue, Sunny Hei Wong, Tao Zuo, Yusuf Ali

The role of the gut non-bacterial microbiome (virome, mycobiome, archaeome) and its impact on obesity

The epidemic of obesity and metabolic syndrome is a major public health concern internationally. There is increasing knowledge and research in areas of appetite regulation and drivers of obesity but there is still a gap on how the interactomes are altered in a metabolically dysregulated human body. The human microbiome has been implicated in the pathogenesis of obesity. While the association of gut bacteriome dysbiosis is well described in obesity and metabolic syndrome, there is a lack of an integrative understanding about the roles of the non-bacterial microbiome (virome, mycobiome, and archaeome) in the pathogenesis and protection of obesity and metabolic syndrome. Accumulating studies have revealed that the non-bacterial microbes in the gut, including viruses/phages, fungi, and archaea, are profoundly altered in obesity, and impact host adiposity and physiology in nuanced manners. In this review, we aim to provide a comprehensive view on the role and the mechanisms of the gut virome, mycobiome, and archaeome in obesity. These insights will shed light on the translational value as well as the future research directions for harnessing the gut non-bacterial microbial entities in the therapeutics and prevention of metabolic diseases.

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