SCITECH DAILY – Aging is a universal and intricate process impacting all living organisms, marked by key genetic features like telomere shortening, genomic instability, and epigenetic alterations.
As time progresses, aging induces physical, biochemical, and metabolic changes within the human body.
One significant yet understudied factor in this process is the gut microbiome (GM)—a diverse microbial community that profoundly influences health.
This review delves into the dynamic interplay between the gut microbiome and aging, highlighting microbiota-dependent mechanisms that regulate aging, and examines interventions aimed at promoting healthy aging through microbiome modulation.
Dynamics of Gut Microbiome Across Lifespan
From birth, the gut microbiome evolves, influenced by childbirth mode, breastfeeding, and early-life exposure to microbes. In infancy, the microbiome is less diverse, dominated by Bifidobacterium in breastfed babies and Bacteroides in formula-fed infants.
“Loss of gut microbial diversity diminishes the immune system’s ability to fend off infections, which is particularly problematic in the elderly.”
By adulthood, a robust “core microbiome” develops, modulating immune and metabolic functions. Puberty introduces sex-related changes in the microbiome, primarily due to hormonal influences.
In older adults, microbial diversity decreases, leading to an abundance of frailty-linked microbes like Christensenellaceae and reduced SCFA producers.
These changes impact age-related conditions such as sarcopenia and osteoporosis.
Gut Microbiome and Aging-Related Disorders
Aging-associated shifts in the gut microbiome are linked to various age-related diseases, including neurodegenerative disorders like Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and Parkinson’s disease (PD).
Dysbiosis, or microbial imbalance, has been implicated in inflammaging, a chronic, low-grade inflammation that accelerates aging.
This process is tied to diseases such as AD, PD, cardiovascular conditions, and Type 2 diabetes.
Reduced levels of beneficial SCFA-producing bacteria and increased gut permeability exacerbate inflammation, which accelerates disease progression …
