Recent advances in molecular biology and microbiology have increased awareness on the importance of the gut microbiota to the overall mammalian host's health status. There is therefore increasing interest in nutrition research to characterise the molecular foundations of the gut microbial mammalian crosstalk at both physiological and biochemical pathway levels. Tackling these challenges can be achieved through systems biology strategies based on the measurement of metabolites to assess the highly complex metabolic exchanges between diverse biological compartments, including organs, biofluids and microbial symbionts. By opening a direct biochemical window into the metabolome, metabonomics is uniquely suited for the identification of biomarkers providing better understanding of these complex metabolic processes. Recent applications of top-down system biology based on (1)H NMR spectroscopy coupled to advanced chemometric modelling approaches provided compelling evidence that system-wide and organ-specific changes in biochemical processes may be finely tuned by gut microbial activities. This review aims at describing current advances in NMR-based metabonomics where the main objective is to discern the molecular pathways and biochemical mechanisms under the influence of the gut microbiota. Furthermore, emphasis is given on nutritional approaches, where the quest for homeostatic balance is dependent not only on the host but also on the nutritional modulation of the gut microbiota-host metabolic interactions, using, for instance, probiotics and prebiotics.
Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.