Bile Acid and Gut Microbiota Alterations in Aging, 200 Participants

A cross-sectional study of 100 elderly and 100 young participants, published by Yumei Xu on figshare in 2026. It quantifies fecal and serum bile acids via LC-MS/MS, assesses gut microbiota via 16S rRNA sequencing, and measures cytokine levels via ELISA. The data explores associations between bile acid profiles, microbiota composition, and markers of intestinal barrier dysfunction and inflammaging.

Use Cases

• Correlating bile acid profiles with age based on quantified fecal and serum BA levels.
• Investigating shifts in gut microbiota composition linked to aging based on 16S rRNA sequencing data.
• Modeling associations between specific bile acids (e.g., LCA, CA) and inflammatory markers (IL-6, TNF-α).
• Analyzing the relationship between primary/secondary bile acid ratios and intestinal barrier dysfunction markers like LPS.

Strengths

• Includes data from 200 participants (100 elderly, 100 young), providing a comparative cohort.
• Multiple analytical methods are used: LC-MS/MS for bile acids, 16S rRNA sequencing for microbiota, and ELISA for cytokines.
• Explicitly measures specific bile acids (cholic acid, chenodeoxycholic acid, lithocholic acid) and inflammatory markers (P21, LPS, IL-6, TNF-α).

Limitations

• Row count and column-level documentation are absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• The cross-sectional design, noted in the description, means causal relationships cannot be established from this data alone.
• The dataset is 25.7 KB, indicating a very limited scope likely containing summary or processed results rather than raw sequencing reads.

Provenance

Source

Yumei Xu via figshare.

Collection Method

Data gathered from participant fecal and serum samples analyzed with LC-MS/MS, 16S rRNA gene sequencing, and ELISA.

Time Range

Study period not specified; data reflects a single cross-sectional snapshot.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-04-15 05:42:23; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Geographic coverage of participants is not specified.