UMass Chan Medical School, Department of Emergency Medicine and Department of Microbiology and Physiologic Systems, Program in Microbiome Dynamics, Worcester, MA, USA.
Gut Microbes. 2024 Jan-Dec;16(1):2359677. doi: 10.1080/19490976.2024.2359677. Epub 2024 Jun 3.
The composition of the human gut microbiome has been observed to change over the course of an individual's life. From birth, it is shaped by mode of delivery, diet, environmental exposures, geographic location, exposures to medications, and by aging itself. Here, we present a narrative review of the gut microbiome across the lifespan with a focus on its impacts on aging and age-related diseases in humans. We will describe how it is shaped, and features of the gut microbiome that have been associated with diseases at different phases of life and how this can adversely affect healthy aging. Across the lifespan, and especially in old age, a diverse microbiome that includes organisms suspected to produce anti-inflammatory metabolites such as short-chain fatty acids, has been reported to be associated with healthy aging. These findings have been remarkably consistent across geographic regions of the world suggesting that they could be universal features of healthy aging across all cultures and genetic backgrounds. Exactly how these features of the microbiome affect biologic processes associated with aging thus promoting healthy aging will be crucial to targeting the gut microbiome for interventions that will support health and longevity.
人类肠道微生物组的组成在个体的一生中发生变化。从出生开始，它就受到分娩方式、饮食、环境暴露、地理位置、药物暴露和衰老本身的影响。在这里，我们对整个生命周期的肠道微生物组进行了叙述性综述，重点介绍了它对人类衰老和与年龄相关疾病的影响。我们将描述它是如何形成的，以及与生命不同阶段的疾病相关的肠道微生物组的特征，以及这如何对健康衰老产生不利影响。在整个生命周期中，特别是在老年期，报告称多样化的微生物组包括被怀疑产生抗炎代谢物（如短链脂肪酸）的生物体，与健康衰老有关。这些发现跨越了世界的地理区域，非常一致，这表明它们可能是所有文化和遗传背景下健康衰老的普遍特征。这些微生物组的特征如何影响与衰老相关的生物学过程，从而促进健康衰老，对于针对肠道微生物组进行干预以支持健康和长寿至关重要。
