Microbiota Diversity and Composition and Polyphenol Bioavailability

Composition and diversity of intestinal microbiota that are subject to the influence of diet have a significant impact on health in the gut and whole body via complex interactions between food constituents, bacteria, and host. Polyphenols are poorly absorbed in the upper gastrointestinal tract and reach the colon, where they may have a reciprocal relationship with microbiota. Because how polyphenols mediate gut health and reduce risk for other pathogenesis remains to be elucidated, we propose to conduct a pilot controlled feeding study to examine the impact of polyphenols and other constituents in the free dried whole cranberry powder (FWCP) on composition and diversity of gut microbiota, as well as to substantiate bioavailability of cranberry polyphenols. The central hypothesis underlying the proposed research is that FWCP polyphenols will diminish the magnitude of a plant food free diet induced increase in Alistipes, Bilophila and Bacteroides and will increase Enterococcus, Bifidobacterium, Eggerthella lenta, and Blautia coccoides-Eubacterium rectale groups. The proposed research is novel as no study has examined the specific impact of FWCP polyphenols incorporated into a plant food free diet on gut microbiota. This proposed study is innovative because the positive results will demonstrate with a high degree of confidence that the impact of FWCP constituents on production of beneficial short chain fatty acids, carcinogenic bile acids, and atherogenic trimethylamine. The results generated from the study using a plant food free dietary regimen as the background diet will provide definite proof on microbial modulating actions of FWCP, inform mechanism of actions in urinary tract infection (UTI), and be used to formulate messages in consumer communications for gut health.