Gut metagenome profile of the Nunavik Inuit youth is distinct from industrial and non-industrial counterparts

• Published in: Communications Biology
• Main Authors: Abed, Jehane Y., Godon, Thibaud, Mehdaoui, Fadwa, Plante, Pier-Luc, Boissinot, Maurice, Bergeron, Michel G., Bélanger, Richard E., Muckle, Gina, Poliakova, Natalia, Ayotte, Pierre, Corbeil, Jacques
• Format: Other/Unknown Material
• Language: English
• Published: Springer Nature 2023
• Subjects: Métagénomique; Intestins > Microbiologie; Inuits; Nunavik; inuit; inuits
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11794/112385; https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-022-04372-y

Comparative metagenomics studies have highlighted differences in microbiome community structure among human populations over diverse lifestyles and environments. With their unique environmental and historical backgrounds, Nunavik Inuit have a distinctive gut microbiome with undocumented health-related implications. Using shotgun metagenomics, we explored the taxonomic and functional structure of the gut microbiome from 275 Nunavik Inuit ranging from 16 to 30-year-old. Whole-metagenome analyses revealed that Nunavik Inuit youths have a more diverse microbiome than their non-industrialized and industrialized counterparts. A comparison of k-mer content illustrated the uniqueness of the Nunavik gut microbiome. Short-chain fatty acids producing species, and carbohydrates degradation pathways dominated Inuit metagenomes. We identified a taxonomic and functional signature unique to the Nunavik gut microbiome contrasting with other populations using a random forest classifier. Here, we show that the Nunavik Inuit gut microbiome exhibits high diversity and a distinct community structure.