Blood metabolomic shift links diet and gut microbiota to multiple health outcomes among Hispanic/Latino immigrants in the U.S.

Immigrants from less industrialized countries who are living in the U.S. often bear an elevated risk of multiple disease due to the adoption of a U.S. lifestyle. Blood metabolome holds valuable information on environmental exposure and the pathogenesis of chronic diseases, offering insights into the link between environmental factors and disease burden. Analyzing 634 serum metabolites from 7,114 Hispanics (1,141 U.S.-born, 5,973 foreign-born) in the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos (HCHS/SOL), we identified profound blood metabolic shift during acculturation. Machine learning highlighted the prominent role of non-genetic factors, especially food and gut microbiota, in these changes. Immigration-related metabolites correlated with plant-based foods and beneficial gut bacteria for foreign-born Hispanics, and with meat-based or processed food and unfavorable gut bacteria for U.S.-born Hispanics. Cardiometabolic traits, liver, and kidney function exhibited a link with immigration-related metabolic changes, which were also linked to increased risk of diabetes, severe obesity, chronic kidney disease, and asthma.

Highlights

• A substantial proportion of identified blood metabolites differ between U.S.-born and foreign-born Hispanics/Latinos in the U.S.

• Food and gut microbiota are the major modifiable contributors to blood metabolomic difference between U.S.-born and foreign-born Hispanics/Latinos.

• U.S. nativity related metabolites collectively correlate with a spectrum of clinical traits and chronic diseases.