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CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE

Before the heart attack

Nature Medicine volume 28, pages 237–238 (2022)Cite this article

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An Author Correction to this article was published on 09 March 2022

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Integrated analysis of microbiome and metabolome profiles in unique cohorts reveals early and late markers of the transition towards ischemic heart disease.

Ischemic heart disease (IHD), also known as coronary artery disease, can culminate in heart attack and is a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Current treatment regimens aim to modify traditional risk factors such as high blood pressure, serum cholesterol or body weight, but these are far from adequate. To improve clinical outcomes, more insight is required into the complex etiology of IHD. In this issue of Nature Medicine, two large-scale studies by Fromentin et al.1 and Talmor-Barkan et al.2 integrate extensive gut microbiome and serum metabolome profiles in the progression toward IHD, taking into account key confounders such as metabolic status and medication — and thereby providing insight into the etiology of IHD.

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Fig. 1: Overview of changes in microbial pathways in different strata of healthy individuals, metabolically matched control individuals (with metabolic dysregulation but without IHD) and patients with IHD.

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Author notes

  1. These authors contributed equally: Ellen E. Blaak, Willem M. de Vos.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Human Biology, NUTRIM, School for Nutrition and Translational Research in Metabolism, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands

    Ellen E. Blaak

  2. Human Microbiome Research Program, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland

    Willem M. de Vos

  3. Laboratory of Microbiology, Wageningen University, Wageningen, the Netherlands

    Willem M. de Vos

Authors
  1. Ellen E. Blaak
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  2. Willem M. de Vos
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Correspondence to Ellen E. Blaak.

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Competing interests

W.M.d.V. is a cofounder of and has stock in A-mansia Biotech, which is commercializing the gut bacterium Akkermansia muciniphila. E.E.B. declares no competing interests.

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Blaak, E.E., de Vos, W.M. Before the heart attack. Nat Med 28, 237–238 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-022-01685-7

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