Differences in the gut microbiome by physical activity and BMI among colorectal cancer patients
Karen Pendergrass is a microbiome researcher specializing in microbiome-targeted interventions (MBTIs). She systematically analyzes scientific literature to identify microbial patterns, develop hypotheses, and validate interventions. As the founder of the Microbiome Signatures Database, she bridges microbiome research with clinical practice. In 2012, based on her own investigative research, she became the first documented case of FMT for Celiac Disease, four years before the first published case study.
Read MoreWhat was studied?
Researchers examined whether physical activity and BMI relate to gut microbiome diversity and composition in colorectal cancer patients. This addresses a proposed but untested mechanism linking energy balance to colorectal cancer risk.
How was it studied?
Pre-surgery stool samples from 179 colorectal cancer patients (stages I to IV) underwent 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Physical activity in the prior year was assessed by questionnaire and classified as active versus inactive, and patients were grouped into four physical activity/BMI combinations.
What did they find?
Inactive patients had lower Shannon and Simpson diversity than active patients, and obese patients had lower diversity than normal weight patients across three diversity metrics. Overweight or obese, inactive patients showed the lowest diversity compared with normal weight, active patients. Two phyla, Actinobacteria and Fusobacteria, and twelve genera differed in abundance across the physical activity and BMI groups, with results varying by sex and tumor site.
Why it matters
This is the first evidence directly linking physical activity to gut microbiome diversity and composition in colorectal cancer patients. The findings suggest physical activity may offset obesity-related gut dysbiosis, pointing to a possible microbial mechanism in the energy balance and colorectal cancer relationship.