RESEARCH AREAS
Gut Microbiome
Research projects
Diet-microbiome interactions in adults
GutEnergy - Human gut microbiome-dependent energy extraction
"A calorie is not a calorie" is a statement often discussed in obesity management. We will seek to understand whether differences in gut microbiome composition affect energy extraction as reflected by the amount of energy being excreted into faeces. If so, this could over time translate into different physiological effects on the pathogenesis on human obesity.
Collaborators include.
- Michiel Kleerebezem, Wageningen University & Research
Funding
- Novo Nordisk Foundation
Period: 2024-2027
Contact
Associate professor Henrik Munch Roager
YourGutBrain – Dairy for your gut and brain
The purpose of the YourGutBrain project is to investigate whether intake of fermented dairy and non-fermented dairy, respectively, affect weekly bowel movements and cognitive performance. This will be investigated through a dietary intervention study including healthy women with few bowel movements per week.
A wide range of measures related to the gut and the brain will be assessed upon consumption of fermented dairy and non-fermented dairy, respectively. Together, this will provide insights into whether dairy can affect bowel habits and cognition, as well as potential underlying mechanisms linking the gut and the brain.
Collaborators
- Associate Professor Anke Karabanov, Department of Nutrition, Exercise and Sports, University of Copenhagen
- Professor Hanne Christine Bertram, Department of Food Science, Aarhus University
- Professor Paul Cotter, APC Microbiome Ireland, University College Cork, Ireland.
Funding
- Arla Food for Health (AFH) and Danish Milk Levy Fund. AFH is a public-private research partnership between University of Copenhagen, Aarhus University, Arla Foods Amba and Arla Foods Ingredients
Period: 2023 - 2027.
Contact
Associate professor Henrik Munch Roager
Towards Personalized dietary Recommendations based on the Interaction between diet, Microbiome and Abiotic conditions in the gut
The project will generate more knowledge of the role the gut microbiota plays when people react differently to the same diet.
Focus areas
To investigate how the gut microbiota and environmental (abiotic) factors in the gut shape personal responses to food.
To investigate how and why digestion of food by the gut microbiota into small molecules (metabolites) varies from individual to individual.
About the project
You are what you eat, but why don’t we all react to foods in the same way?
Our guts contain a large community of microbes, and when we eat something and our microbes digest the food, they create products called microbial metabolites. These metabolites affect our immune system, our hormone balance, our health and possibly even our mood. When looking at dietary advice, there is no good ‘one-size fits-all’ solution.
In PRIMA, we want to explore the effect of diet from a different perspective, namely from your gut. We believe we can predict an individual’s response to a given diet based on fundamental factors such as pH and transit time in the gut, which govern the microbial responses. This way, we will develop better dietary advice tailored to a given person.
Involved in the project
Internal
Associate Professor Henrik Munch Roager
Professor Lars Ove Dragsted
PhD Fellow Nicola Procházková
External
Tine Rask Licht, DTU Fødevareinstituttet
Thue Schwartz, Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Basic Metabolic Research (CBMR), University of Copenhagen
Jeroen Raes, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven
Abigail Johnson, BioTechnology Institute, University of Minnesota
Funded by
Period: February 2020 – January 2026.
Contact
Mail: prima@nexs.ku.dk
Telephone: +45 2917 6795
NUTRIOME is a Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions (MSCA) Doctoral Network of the Horizon Europe. The focus of NUTRIOME is to train 10 PhD students in data-driven precision nutrition.
We will seek to understand personal responses to meals by integrating microbiome and metabolomics data with emphasis on gut microbial metabolites as predictors of metabolic responses to meals.
Collaborators include.
- Stine Ulven, University of Oslo
- Carsten Carlberg, Polish Academy of Sciences in Olsztyn
- Susan Coort, Maastricht University
- Eran Elinav, Deutsches Krebsforschungs-zentrum
- Lydia Afman, Wageningen University and Research
- Karl-Heinz Herzig, University of Oulu
- Rikard Landberg, Chalmers University of Technology
- Lorraine Brennan, University College of Dublin
Funding
- Horizon Europe
Period: 2023-2027
Contact
Associate professor Henrik Munch Roager
Diet-microbiome interactions in infants
Diet-derived microbial metabolites to modulate gut motility in infants
The Sapere Aude project will generate new knowledge about how gut microbes via production of small molecules can impact gut motility in infants.
Infantile colic, functional constipation and diarrhoea are stressful conditions in early life associated with transient dysregulation of intestinal motility, which may depend on the interplay between nutrition and the gut microbiota.
Infantile colic, functional constipation and diarrhoea are stressful conditions in early life associated with transient dysregulation of intestinal motility, which may depend on the interplay between nutrition and the gut microbiota.
The purpose of the project is to conduct an infant cohort study following infants’ progression from milk to solid foods, concurrent with their progression in gut microbiota diversity, with the aim of identifying diet-dependent gut microbial metabolites, which affect intestinal motility. If successful, this knowledge may lay the foundation for innovative strategies to prevent and alleviate stomach ache in infants.
Involved in the project
Internal
Associate professor Henrik Munch Roager
PhD Fellow Gladys Thingstrup Mathieu
Research assistant Adam Duun Gottlieb
External
Lindsay Hall, TU München
Catherine Stanton, APC Microbiome Ireland, University College Cork
Thue W. Schwartz, Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Basic Metabolic Research (CBMR), University of Copenhagen
Funded by
Independent Research Fund Denmark – Sapere Aude: DFF Starting Grant.
Period: 1 June 2021 - 31 May 2025.
Contact
Associate professor Henrik Munch Roager
The project will investigate bifidobacteria's ability to fortify the gut barrier function via production of small molecules in early life
The purpose of the project is to investigate whether and how bifidobacteria produce a specific group of molecules in the infant gut and the molecules' potential to affect gut barrier function in early life. This knowledge may pave the way for novel strategies to strengthen gut function in early life.
Collaborators
- Martin F. Laursen, Technical University of Denmark, Denmark
- Mikiyasu Sakanaka, Kyoto University, Japan
- Mindy Engevik, Medical University of South Carolina, USA
Funding
- The Biocodex Microbiota Foundation
Period: 2023-2024
Contact
Associate professor Henrik Munch Roager
The project will investigate gut microbial production, host-microbial metabolism, and function of aromatic lactic acids during infancy.
We have previously shown that breastmilk-promoted Bifidobacterium species produce aromatic lactic acids in the infant gut, which may affect immune function (Laursen et al. 2021; Nature Microbiology). This project builds on these results and seeks to further decipher the absorption, metabolism, excretion and immune function of these molecules in infants.
Collaborators
- Martin F. Laursen, Technical University of Denmark, Denmark
- Susanne Brix, Technical University of Denmark, Denmark
- Daniel Globisch, Uppsala University, Sweden
Funding
- Independent Research Fund Denmark
Period: 2023-2027
Contact
Associate professor Henrik Munch Roager
Members
Name | Title | Phone | |
---|---|---|---|
Gottlieb, Adam Duun | Research Assistant | ||
Gaafar, Ahmed Mamdouh Moustafa K | PhD Fellow | +4535327224 | |
Bucci, Francesca | PhD Fellow | +4535335503 | |
Stolberg-Mathieu, Gladys | PhD Fellow | +4535334217 | |
Roager, Henrik Munch | Associate Professor - Promotion Programme | +4535324928 | |
Nielsen, Klara | PhD Fellow | +4535321549 | |
Jørgensen, Malte Studnitz | PhD Fellow | +4535328985 |