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A randomised trial of the effect of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid supplements on the human intestinal microbiota

Overview of attention for article published in Gut, September 2017
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About this Attention Score

  • In the top 5% of all research outputs scored by Altmetric
  • High Attention Score compared to outputs of the same age (99th percentile)
  • High Attention Score compared to outputs of the same age and source (96th percentile)

Mentioned by

news
2 news outlets
blogs
1 blog
twitter
364 X users
patent
1 patent
facebook
13 Facebook pages
reddit
2 Redditors
video
1 YouTube creator

Citations

dimensions_citation
345 Dimensions

Readers on

mendeley
428 Mendeley
Title
A randomised trial of the effect of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid supplements on the human intestinal microbiota
Published in
Gut, September 2017
DOI 10.1136/gutjnl-2017-314968
Pubmed ID
Authors

Henry Watson, Suparna Mitra, Fiona C Croden, Morag Taylor, Henry M Wood, Sarah L Perry, Jade A Spencer, Phil Quirke, Giles J Toogood, Clare L Lawton, Louise Dye, Paul M Loadman, Mark A Hull

Abstract

Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) have anticolorectal cancer (CRC) activity. The intestinal microbiota has been implicated in colorectal carcinogenesis. Dietary omega-3 PUFAs alter the mouse intestinal microbiome compatible with antineoplastic activity. Therefore, we investigated the effect of omega-3 PUFA supplements on the faecal microbiome in middle-aged, healthy volunteers (n=22). A randomised, open-label, cross-over trial of 8 weeks' treatment with 4 g mixed eicosapentaenoic acid/docosahexaenoic acid in two formulations (soft-gel capsules and Smartfish drinks), separated by a 12-week 'washout' period. Faecal samples were collected at five time-points for microbiome analysis by 16S ribosomal RNA PCR and Illumina MiSeq sequencing. Red blood cell (RBC) fatty acid analysis was performed by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry. Both omega-3 PUFA formulations induced similar changes in RBC fatty acid content, except that drinks were associated with a larger, and more prolonged, decrease in omega-6 PUFA arachidonic acid than the capsule intervention (p=0.02). There were no significant changes in α or β diversity, or phyla composition, associated with omega-3 PUFA supplementation. However, a reversible increased abundance of several genera, including Bifidobacterium, Roseburia and Lactobacillus was observed with one or both omega-3 PUFA interventions. Microbiome changes did not correlate with RBC omega-3 PUFA incorporation or development of omega-3 PUFA-induced diarrhoea. There were no treatment order effects. Omega-3 PUFA supplementation induces a reversible increase in several short-chain fatty acid-producing bacteria, independently of the method of administration. There is no simple relationship between the intestinal microbiome and systemic omega-3 PUFA exposure. ISRCTN18662143.

X Demographics

X Demographics

The data shown below were collected from the profiles of 364 X users who shared this research output. Click here to find out more about how the information was compiled.
Mendeley readers

Mendeley readers

The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 428 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.

Geographical breakdown

Country Count As %
Unknown 428 100%

Demographic breakdown

Readers by professional status Count As %
Student > Bachelor 65 15%
Researcher 47 11%
Student > Master 45 11%
Student > Ph. D. Student 44 10%
Student > Doctoral Student 22 5%
Other 60 14%
Unknown 145 34%
Readers by discipline Count As %
Medicine and Dentistry 64 15%
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology 53 12%
Agricultural and Biological Sciences 38 9%
Nursing and Health Professions 36 8%
Immunology and Microbiology 23 5%
Other 53 12%
Unknown 161 38%
Attention Score in Context

Attention Score in Context

This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 248. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 30 October 2023.
All research outputs
#150,733
of 25,563,770 outputs
Outputs from Gut
#101
of 7,400 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#3,164
of 329,039 outputs
Outputs of similar age from Gut
#4
of 81 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 25,563,770 research outputs across all sources so far. Compared to these this one has done particularly well and is in the 99th percentile: it's in the top 5% of all research outputs ever tracked by Altmetric.
So far Altmetric has tracked 7,400 research outputs from this source. They typically receive a lot more attention than average, with a mean Attention Score of 19.9. This one has done particularly well, scoring higher than 98% of its peers.
Older research outputs will score higher simply because they've had more time to accumulate mentions. To account for age we can compare this Altmetric Attention Score to the 329,039 tracked outputs that were published within six weeks on either side of this one in any source. This one has done particularly well, scoring higher than 99% of its contemporaries.
We're also able to compare this research output to 81 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one has done particularly well, scoring higher than 96% of its contemporaries.