The gut microbiome is a malleable factor playing a pivotal role in human health and performance. As such, there is growing recognition within the Department of Defense (DoD) that research towards supporting a healthy and resilient gut microbiome will be critical to optimizing the health and performance of future Warfighters. The joint efforts of our internal Warfighter Gut Microbiome Working Group (WGMWG) includes a multi-faceted research effort seeking to characterize and understand how specific military-relevant stressors influence the delicate balance within a healthy gut microbiome. Additionally, the work seeks to identify nutritional interventions that build resiliency to these stressors by targeting the gut microbiome. Current clinical studies are investigating the effects of environmental and physiologic perturbations on the gut microbiome. Samples obtained from these efforts will be used in in vitro fermentation studies coupled with in vitro cell culture techniques aiming to understand the impact of these perturbations on gut metabolism and biological function, including gut permeability, inflammation and innate immunity. Additionally, in vitro fermentation will be employed to screen dietary input factors that could restore microbiome homeostasis and build resiliency toward stressor-induced dysbiosis. Military relevant stressors currently under study include sudden changes in diet, extreme physical exertion with undernutrition, and extended exposure to altitude (i.e. hypoxia), with cognitive and heat stress under consideration for future studies. Ancillary to our research efforts, the WGMWG is also actively developing a research roadmap to align complementary programs within this emerging DoD research area. Toward this end, a gut microbiome informational meeting was recently held with representatives from all services within the DoD. As part of the discussion, several key strategic research and capability gaps were identified that will need to be addressed in order to effectively meet the future potential of the gut microbiome as a tool for managing Warfighter performance. The talk will highlight the outcomes of the informational meeting as well as provide recent data from the ongoing clinical trials and in vitro studies.

Gut microbiome research and influence on warfighter performance

252nd National Meeting (2016)

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