Understanding Gut Microbiome's Impact on Osteoporosis

A total of 59 white females aged 60 years or older were recruited from the ongoing Louisiana Osteoporosis Study, which aims to establish a large sample pool in the greater New Orleans and surrounding areas of Southern Louisiana, USA, for investigating genetic and environmental factors related to musculoskeletal disorders. This study has been approved by the institutional review board of Tulane University (New Orleans, LA, USA), and each participant provided written consent before data and biosample collection. Individuals with pathological conditions that may affect bone mineral density (e.g., bilateral oophorectomy, chronic renal failure, liver failure, lung diseases, gastrointestinal diseases, and inherited bone diseases), or factors that may impact the gut microbiome (e.g., antibiotic use, gastroenteritis, major surgery requiring hospitalization, and intercontinental travel within the past three months), were excluded. The metagenomic shotgun sequencing of the collected fecal samples was performed by the Alkek Center for Metagenomics and Microbiome Research at Baylor College of Medicine.