Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • News & Views
  • Published:

MICROBIOME

Linking anaerobic gut bacteria and cardiovascular disease

Cooperative interaction between low-abundance gut bacteria is required to convert l-carnitine to TMAO via a multi-step pathway, which leads to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Rent or buy this article

Prices vary by article type

from$1.95

to$39.95

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Fig. 1: The conversion of l-carnitine to TMAO in an anoxic environment.

References

  1. Koh, A., De Vadder, F., Kovatcheva-Datchary, P. & Bäckhed, F. Cell https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2016.05.041 (2016).

  2. Koeth, R. A. et al. J. Clin. Invest. https://doi.org/10.1172/JCI94601 (2019).

  3. Rebouche, C. J. & Seim, H. Annu. Rev. Nutr. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.nutr.18.1.39 (1998).

  4. Koeth, R. A. et al. Cell Metab. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cmet.2014.10.006 (2014).

  5. Zhu, Y. et al. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1316569111 (2014).

  6. Buffa, J. et al. Nat. Microbiol. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41564-021-01010-x (2021).

  7. Rajakovich, L. J., Fu, B., Bollenbach, M. & Balskus, E. P. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2101498118 (2021).

  8. Wang, Z. et al. Eur Heart J. https://doi.org/10.1093/eurheartj/ehy799 (2019).

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Karsten Zengler.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Coker, J., Zaramela, L.S. & Zengler, K. Linking anaerobic gut bacteria and cardiovascular disease. Nat Microbiol 7, 14–15 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41564-021-01009-4

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41564-021-01009-4

Search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing