Microbiome analysis of stool samples from African Americans with colon polyps

Colonic polyps are common tumors occurring in ~50% of Western populations with ~10% risk of malignant progression. Dietary agents have been considered the primary environmental exposure to promote colorectal cancer development. However, the colonic mucosa is permanently in contact with the microbiota and its metabolic products including toxins that also have the potential to trigger oncogenic transformation. The goal of this study was to analyze fecal DNA for microbiota composition and functional potential in African Americans with pre-neoplastic lesions. This study reveals that at the pre-neoplastic stages, there is a trend showing microbiota changes between healthy and colon polyp patients at the sub-genus level.