Figure 3. A lower fecal microbiome diversity associated to individuals from industrialized cultures.

Dominguez-Bello and her team compared the bacterial diversity in feces from cultures with hunter-gatherer lifestyles compared to progressively more industrialized cultures. A) Phylogenetic diversity in feces from Yanomami and Guahibo Amerindians, Malawians and U.S. individuals. A higher bacterial diversity was detected in feces from the Yanomami, an isolated, rural indigenous culture inhabiting the Amazon. In comparison, a slightly decreased fecal diversity was found in Guahibo Amerindians. However, a major decrease was detected in the diversity of the fecal microbiota in U.S. subjects. A pronounced decrease was also detected in the functional profiles of fecal microbiomes from U.S. subjects compared to cultures with more traditional lifestyles (figure not shown). (Credits: Clemente, et al. Sci Adv. 2015. Fig.1A.).

B) Key differential bacterial groups between fecal microbiomes from Yanomami and Guahibo Amerindians, Malawians and U.S. subjects. (Credits: Clemente, et al. Sci Adv. 2015. Fig.1C).

C) Functional diversity in feces from Yanomami and Guahibo Amerindians, Malawians and U.S. individuals. As expected, a higher overall functional diver(Credits: Clemente, et al. Sci Adv. 2015. Fig.2A.).

D) Comparison of major metabolic pathways detected in fecal microbiomes from Yanomami and Guahibo Amerindians, Malawians and U.S. subjects. (Credits: Clemente, et al. Sci Adv. 2015. Fig.2C).