Those who are ready for unforgettable roasts, braised meats or more simply loves Florentine rare, keep in mind the TMAO (Trimethylamine N-oxide). This abbreviation describes a substance that derives from carnitine present in meat that could increase the risk of developing atherosclerosis, with evident repercussions on the health of the arteries. To promote the production of this compound are specific intestinal bacteria which, over time, become protagonists in a qualitative-quantitative sense in the microbiota of the digestive tract. Now a research coordinated by Stanley Hazen, director of the Cleveland Clinic Center for Microbiome & Human Health, allows us to better understand what would happen in the megalopolis of bacterial strains that inhabit the digestive system, behaving like real “laboratories”.
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The research, in practice, sheds light on a second metabolic stage of the transformation of carnitine and TMAO and was published in Nature Microbiology. Starting from previous studies that showed that a double step is necessary to get from the carnitine of the steak to TMAO, with an intermediate metabolism that is allowed by a particular molecule called gamma-BB (gamma-ButirroBetaine), the American experts have seen how only some bacteria “specialized” in this function can really carry out the complete and potentially harmful transformation for the cardiovascular system. One in particular is under the magnifying glass. It is called Emergencia timonensis and appears as a real “protagonist” of the double passage that increases the risks because it would be the main “laboratory” capable of favoring the transformation of gamma-BB into TMAO. In the intestine of those who are vegetarians or vegans this bacterium is present in minimal quantities and therefore the transformation of carnitine would be almost impossible.
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In the survey, evaluating both blood draws and clinical conditions of nearly 3,000 people, the American scientists found that when there are higher gamma-BB values in the blood, there is a greater risk of heart attacks, strokes or deaths from these causes. Not only that: even at an experimental level, if Emergencia timonenis is inserted into the microbiota of mice, the unwanted transformation of carnitine can be favored. Finally, the study made it possible to identify six different genes in the patrimony of the bacteria delegated to the use of gamma-BB, therefore called Gbu, of which four are implicated in the phenomenon. And it has been seen that in particular one of these bacterial genes (GbuA), if particularly represented, is associated with a diet particularly rich in red meat and high levels of TMAO in the blood.
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The resulting working hypothesis is simple: by modifying the diet, one can think of positively intervening on the possible risks associated with the excessive intake of meat foods. Moreover, perhaps, in the future, we could study tools capable of positively modifying the microbiota in those with characteristics linked to a large presence of Emergencia timonensis strains. “It is a work, the result of a series of experiments, which probably marks a crucial stage in the understanding of the mechanisms that link the excessive consumption of meat (especially red) to cardiovascular diseases – he explains Andrea Ghiselli, president of the Italian Society of Food Science (You know). Understanding the mechanism and identifying the “culprit”, if it resists all levels of judgment, is important not so much for the increase of knowledge itself, which is already a priceless treasure, but because it opens the way to further knowledge of the necessary countermeasures, not necessarily dietary “.
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