Bacteria in our gut could play a role in cardiometabolic disease: A new initiative aims to find out
A new Denmark-based research initiative aims to establish a potential causal link between the gut microbiome – the combined genetic material of the communities of bacteria and other microbes in the human gut – and the development of cardiometabolic diseases (CMD) such as obesity, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. The goal is to generate knowledge that can lead to new prevention or treatment options for people living with, or at risk of, CMD.
The Novo Nordisk Foundation has committed DKK 150 million (USD 22 million) for the first phase of the Microbiome Health Initiative, a virtual research centre anchored at the Technical University of Denmark (DTU), north of Copenhagen. Professor Fredrik Bäckhed from the University of Gothenburg will be employed part-time at DTU to lead the initiative, with Professor Tine Rask Licht from DTU National Food Institute as co-Director.
