10-oxo stearic acid treatment alters the microbiota composition

The gut microbiota play a crucial role in influencing physiological responses associated with metabolic diseases and inflammatory bowel diseases, yet the molecular mechanisms behind these effects are not well understood. By employing activity-based metabolomic profiling, we discovered that 10-oxo stearic acid, a metabolite produced by microbes from oleic acid, specifically activates the intestinal peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha. Our research demonstrates that 10-oxo stearic acid binds to peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha with greater affinity than previously identified endogenous ligands. Given that 10-oxo stearic acid is a microbial byproduct, we explored its potential impact on gut microbial composition. To this end, we analyzed the microbial composition of fecal samples collected from the mice used in the study using 16S ribosomal RNA gene sequencing.