Abstract
Societies with exposure to preindustrial diets exhibit improved markers of health. Our study used a comprehensive multi-omic approach to reveal that the gut microbiome of the Ju/'hoansi hunter-gatherers, one of the most remote KhoeSan groups, exhibit a higher diversity and richness, with an abundance of microbial species lost in the western population. The Ju/'hoansi microbiome showed enhanced global transcription and enrichment of complex carbohydrate metabolic and energy generation pathways. The Ju/'hoansi also show high abundance of short-chain fatty acids that are associated with health and optimal immune function. In contrast, these pathways and their respective species were found in low abundance or completely absent in Western populations. Amino acid and fatty acid metabolism pathways were observed prevalent in the Western population, associated with biomarkers of chronic inflammation. Our study provides the first in-depth multi-omic characterization of the Ju/'hoansi microbiome, revealing uncharacterized species and functional pathways that are associated with health.