Synergy between Enterobacteriaceae and diet mediates competition between dominant Bacteroidales in the human gut.

Enterobacteriaceae synergize with dietary components to promote Segatella copri dominance over Bacteroidaceae in the human gut.

• Why it matters: Understanding the factors that influence gut microbiota composition is crucial because diet alone does not fully explain the dominance of different Bacteroidota in various populations. This knowledge can inform strategies to modulate gut health and address microbiome-related diseases.
• What they did: The study screened 94 dietary components in synthetic gut communities and used metatranscriptomics, metabolomics, and isolates to analyze interactions between Enterobacteriaceae, Segatella, and dietary polysaccharides, especially arabinan.
• The result: Findings show that Enterobacteriaceae enhances Segatella dominance in human and mouse gut communities, with a positive correlation observed in global metagenomes, highlighting ecosystem-level interactions that favor Prevotellaceae dominance.