Gut commensals make choline too

Abstract

Hydrolysis of phosphatidylcholine to choline was found to be catalysed by phospholipase D enzymes from diverse members of the gut microbiota, revealing a mechanism by which commensals obtain choline for subsequent production of disease-associated trimethylamine.

Fig. 1|. Gut commensal organisms play an important role in the conversion of choline to disease-associated TMA.

By narrowing in on the biochemical activity of individual gut microorganisms, it was revealed that commensals can convert PC to choline using PLD enzymes. This process occurs in microorganisms that can (that is, those harbouring the CutC gene) and cannot further convert choline to TMA, which is then converted to TMAO by the host via FMO3 (flavin-containing monooxygenase 3). Gut commensal PLD enzymes differ from pathogenic PLDs and host PLDs, and thus may prove to be a viable therapeutic target.