Metabolism and Obesity: Oral microbiota and fat taste sensitivity

The relationship between oral microbiome and fat taste sensitivity in obese patients after sleeve gastrectomy

Bernard et al. explored the relationship between oral microbiota composition & fat taste sensitivity in obese patients after Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy.

→ Oral microbiota has been associated with fat taste sensitivity and a preferential consumption of low-fat foods is reported by most of the patients after a vertical sleeve gastrectomy (VSG).

→ Oral microbiome surrounding the gustatory circumvallate papillae (CVP) and the lipid perception thresholds were explored in 32 obese patients before and 6 months after VSG.

→ Oral microbiota composition showed clear differences before and after VSG.

→ After VSG, the oral microbiota of patients with improved fat sensitivity had higher relative abundance of Prevotella 7 and Atopobium associated with lower relative abundance of Porphyromonas, Fusobacterium, and Haemophilus.

→ The oral microbiome may be a source of biomarkers to identify patients with unimproved orosensory lipid perception in order to provide them personalized nutritional advices ensuring the long-term success of the VSG.

CITATIONS

Tissue microbiomes_1

A specific tongue microbiota signature is found in patients displaying an improvement of orosensory lipid perception after a sleeve gastrectomy

 

→ In collaboration with Vaiomer

Bernard A, Radoi L, Christensen J, Servant F, Blasco-Blaque V, Ledoux S, Collet X, Besnard P. Front Nutr. 2023 Jan 11;9:1046454. doi: 10.3389/fnut.2022.1046454. PMID: 36712531; PMCID: PMC9874242.

A preferential consumption of low-fat foods is reported by most of the patients after a vertical sleeve gastrectomy (VSG). The fact that a recent study shed light on a relationship between oral microbiota and fat taste sensitivity in obese patients prompted us to explore whether such a connection also exists in the context of a VSG.

Thirty-two adult female patients with a severe obesity (BMI = 43.1 ± 0.7 kg/m2) and candidates for a VSG were selected. Oral microbiota composition surrounding the gustatory circumvallate papillae (CVP) and the lipid perception thresholds were explored before and 6 months after surgery.

VSG was found to be associated both with a qualitative (compositional changes) and quantitative (lower gene richness) remodeling of the peri-CVP microbiota. Analysis of the lipid perception allowed us to distinguish two subgroups: patients with a post-operative improvement of the fat taste sensitivity (i.e., with a lower threshold, n = 14) and unimproved patients (n = 18). Specific peri-CVP microbiota signatures also discriminated these two subgroups, unimproved patient being characterized by higher levels of Porphyromonas, Fusobacterium, and Haemophilus genera associated with lower levels of Atopobium and Prevotella genera as compared to the lipid-improved patients.

Collectively, these data raise the possibility that the microbial environment surrounding gustatory papillae might play a role in the positive changes of fat taste sensitivity observed in some patients after VSG.

 

Keywords: bariatric surgery; circumvallate papillae; eating behavior; fat taste; oral microbiota.

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