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Alessandro Atzeni

PhD Programme: Nutrition and Metabolism
Research group: Nutrició, Alimentació, Creixement i Salut Mental
Supervisors: Jordi Salas-Salvadó & Mònica Bulló Bonet

Bio

Alessandro obtained his Bachelor's Degree in Biomedical Laboratory Techniques from University of Cagliari (Italy) and his Master's Degree in Bioinformatics and Medical Biotechnologies from University of Verona (Italy). During his second year of Master he did 18 months of Erasmus exchange at the University of Brussels (Belgium), including a period of six months for his final project thesis development. His background is mostly focused in microbiology and molecular biology. During his stay in UK he had the opportunity to work at the University College London Centre for Clinical Microbiology as intern scientist, developing a project related to multidrug resistance in Mycobacterium Tuberculosis and at the Open University, as predoctoral fellow developing a project about novel non-invasive methods for monitoring gut microbiota in different physiological conditions

Project: Gut Microbiota Signatures Associated with Weight Loss and Insulin Resistance

Alterations in gut microbial composition and functionality may contribute to the development of obesity and insulin resistance. The identification of specific gut bacteria and metabolic pathways associated with obesity and related metabolic disorders represents a promising novel perspective to tailor personalized interventions. The main objectives of this doctoral thesis, designed within the frame of the PREDIMED (PREvención con DIeta MEDiterránea)-Plus clinical trial, are: (i) Explore the association between fecal microbiota, body mass index and changes in total body weight after 12-month lifestyle intervention in elderly subjects (aged 55-75 years) with overweight/obesity and metabolic syndrome; (ii) explore the association between fecal microbiota and insulin resistance, estimated by HOMA-IR index, in non-diabetic subjects from the same cohort. Results shown specific fecal microbiota genera associated with lower body mass index and higher weight loss at 12-month follow-up. Specific genera and related metabolic pathways were negatively associated with higher HOMA-IR index and linked with improved glucose homeostasis via increased amino acid breakdown and sulfate reduction. Besides, specific genera and related metabolic pathways were positively associated with HOMA-IR index and linked to increased saccharide degradation inducing abnormal butyrate production. Our results support the identification of specific gut microbiota taxa to predict obesity treatments' success, but also to target potential bacterial candidates for the development of therapies for insulin resistance. These findings encourage further investigation especially in terms of deepen taxonomic exploration and metabolomics profiling.

Open Access publications

  • Atzeni A, Galié S, Muralidharan J, Babio N, Tinahones FJ, Vioque J, et al. Gut Microbiota Profile and Changes in Body Weight in Elderly Subjects with Overweight/Obesity and Metabolic Syndrome. Microorganisms [Internet]. 2021, 9(2): 346. View full-text
  • Muralidharan J, Moreno-Indias I, Bulló M, Lopez JV, Corella D, Castañer O, Vidal J, Atzeni A, Fernandez-García JC, Torres-Collado L, Fernández-Carrión R, Fito M, Olbeyra R, Gomez-Perez AM, Galiè S, Bernal-López MR, Martinez-Gonzalez MA, Salas-Salvadó J, Tinahones FJ. Effect on gut microbiota of a 1-y lifestyle intervention with Mediterranean diet compared with energy-reduced Mediterranean diet and physical activity promotion: PREDIMED-Plus Study. Am J Clin Nutr. 2021 Sep 1;114(3):1148-1158. View full-text
  • Galié, S., García-Gavilán, J., Camacho-Barcía, L., Atzeni, A., Muralidharan, J., Papandreou, C., Arcelin, P., Palau-Galindo, A., Garcia, D., Basora, J., Arias-Vasquez, A., Bulló, M. Effects of the Mediterranean Diet or Nut Consumption on Gut Microbiota Composition and Fecal Metabolites and their Relationship with Cardiometabolic Risk Factors. Molecular Nutrition & Food Research Volume 65, Issue 19, 2000982. View full-text
  • PHD THESIS: Gut Microbiota Signatures Associated with Weight Loss and Insulin Resistance in an Elderly Mediterranean Population with Overweight/Obesity and Metabolic Syndrome

International secondment

  • University of Cork, Ireland. 3 months (2021)

Outreach activities

  • European Researchers’ Night 2019: “Dieta mediterránea y salud: el papel clave de las bacterias intestinales”.
  • Ones de Ciència, Ràdio Cambrils: “Dieta mediterrània”

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