TEAM GB
Research type
Research Study
Full title
TEAM GB: The Exercise and Gut Bacteria Study
IRAS ID
178511
Contact name
Melanie J Davies
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
The University of Leicester
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 1 days
Research summary
Obesity is increasing worldwide; in the UK alone 62% of the population are considered overweight or obese. Obesity is associated with a number of health problems including type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), and overall mortality. The causes of obesity are complex with poor dietary choices and low levels of physical activity considered the main driving forces. However, a novel factor, the gut microbiome, is increasingly being accepted as a contributing component in the pathophysiology of obesity.
The composition of the gut microbiome can rapidly shift in response to the host; changes in dietary intake has shown to influence the balance of gut microbiota within days. The majority of work conducted to date has investigated the role of diet, with physical activity largely being ignored; yet exercise can influence gut transit time which is related to the diversity of bacterial species in the gut. Available evidence has demonstrated that sedentary animals have significantly different bacterial composition to exercised animals. Convincing evidence exists to show physical activity is beneficial for gut health, being inversely associated with gastrointestinal related disease such as colon cancer. Therefore the role that physical activity plays in gut microbiota and obesity warrants investigation.
We aim to conduct a proof of concept, pre-post pilot-study, to determine whether exercise alters the gut microbiota of obese men. We plan to recruit 19 obese men, aged between 25 and 50 years. We will measure the balance between major bacterial phyla before and after an eight week supervised exercise programme. The microbiota maybe influenced by age, sex and smoking status; therefore we intend to recruit men only, within a tight age range who do not smoke.
REC name
West Midlands - Coventry & Warwickshire Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
15/WM/0244
Date of REC Opinion
27 Aug 2015
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion