title: Gut Microbiota and Extreme Longevity.
abstract: The study of the extreme limits of human lifespan may allow a better understanding of how human beings can escape, delay, or survive the most frequent age-related causes of morbidity, a peculiarity shown by long-living individuals. Longevity is a complex trait in which genetics, environment, and stochasticity concur to determine the chance to reach 100 or more years of age [1]. Because of its impact on human metabolism and immunology, the gut microbiome has been proposed as a possible determinant of healthy aging [2, 3]. Indeed, the preservation of host-microbes homeostasis can counteract inflammaging [4], intestinal permeability [5], and decline in bone and cognitive health [6, 7]. Aiming at deepening our knowledge on the relationship between the gut microbiota and a long-living host, we provide for the first time the phylogenetic microbiota analysis of semi-supercentenarians, i.e., 105-109 years old, in comparison to adults, elderly, and centenarians, thus reconstructing the longest available human microbiota trajectory along aging. We highlighted the presence of a core microbiota of highly occurring, symbiotic bacterial taxa (mostly belonging to the dominant Ruminococcaceae, Lachnospiraceae, and Bacteroidaceae families), with a cumulative abundance decreasing along with age. Aging is characterized by an increasing abundance of subdominant species, as well as a rearrangement in their co-occurrence network. These features are maintained in longevity and extreme longevity, but peculiarities emerged, especially in semi-supercentenarians, describing changes that, even accommodating opportunistic and allochthonous bacteria, might possibly support health maintenance during aging, such as an enrichment and/or higher prevalence of health-associated groups (e.g., Akkermansia, Bifidobacterium, and Christensenellaceae).
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Bologna 40126, Italy. Electronic address: elena.biagi@unibo.it.
authors.forename: Elena
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Biagi
authors.affiliation: DIMES-Department of Experimental, Diagnostic and Specialty Medicine, Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Bologna 40126, Italy; CIG-Interdepartmental Centre "L. Galvani," Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Bologna 40126, Italy; IRCCS, Institute of Neurological Sciences of Bologna, Bologna 40139, Italy.
authors.forename: Claudio
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Franceschi
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Bologna 40126, Italy.
authors.forename: Simone
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Rampelli
authors.affiliation: Institute of Biomedical Technologies, National Research Council (ITB-CNR), Segrate, Milan 20090, Italy.
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Severgnini
authors.affiliation: DIMES-Department of Experimental, Diagnostic and Specialty Medicine, Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Bologna 40126, Italy; CIG-Interdepartmental Centre "L. Galvani," Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Bologna 40126, Italy.
authors.forename: Rita
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ostan
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Bologna 40126, Italy.
authors.forename: Silvia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Turroni
authors.affiliation: Institute of Biomedical Technologies, National Research Council (ITB-CNR), Segrate, Milan 20090, Italy.
authors.forename: Clarissa
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Consolandi
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Bologna 40126, Italy.
authors.forename: Sara
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Quercia
authors.affiliation: DIMES-Department of Experimental, Diagnostic and Specialty Medicine, Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Bologna 40126, Italy; CIG-Interdepartmental Centre "L. Galvani," Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Bologna 40126, Italy.
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Scurti
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical, Experimental and Biomedical Sciences, University of Florence, Florence 50134, Italy.
authors.forename: Daniela
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Monti
authors.affiliation: DIMES-Department of Experimental, Diagnostic and Specialty Medicine, Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Bologna 40126, Italy; CIG-Interdepartmental Centre "L. Galvani," Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Bologna 40126, Italy.
authors.forename: Miriam
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Capri
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Bologna 40126, Italy.
authors.forename: Patrizia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Brigidi
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Bologna 40126, Italy. Electronic address: marco.candela@unibo.it.
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Candela
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001419:Bacteria / Q000145:classification*; D005260:Female; D000069196:Gastrointestinal Microbiome; D006801:Humans; D007422:Intestines / Q000382:microbiology*; D007558:Italy; D008136:Longevity; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D055815:Young Adult