Animal study · Nutrition · 10 Nov 2026
In two adult cohorts, a gut microbe that makes isoCDCA was more common when cholesterol was high, and mice showed the same lipid pattern
Source: Gut Microbes
What the research found
Gut Microbes published a study online on 10 November 2026. Fecal Ruminococcus gnavus was enriched in people with high total cholesterol or LDL cholesterol, in both normal-weight and overweight groups. A species-specific check in an independent cohort (n = 488) agreed. Giving the microbe to mice on a normal diet or a high-fat diet changed lipid metabolism, including circulating lipids and liver markers, and was accompanied by hepatic steatosis. Liver transcripts for Cyp7a1, Cyp8b1, Ldlr, and Ppara were lower, and isochenodeoxycholic acid was higher in the animals and in culture. The microbe converted chenodeoxycholic acid to that bile acid in vitro. In a second human cohort (n = 1,137), serum isochenodeoxycholic acid was higher when cholesterol was high and was positively associated with total cholesterol, triglycerides, and LDL cholesterol. Oral isochenodeoxycholic acid reproduced key lipid changes in mice. The abstract does not give age or sex, and it does not give a human effect size beyond those cohort sizes. DOI 10.1080/19490976.2026.2753210. Not medical advice.
Evidence level: Animal study. Results in animals or cells often don't carry over to people.
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