Correction: The visceral adipose tissue bacterial microbiota provides a signature of obesity based on inferred metagenomic functions

Abstract Metabolic inflammation mediated obesity requires bacterial molecules to trigger immune and adipose cells leading to inflammation and adipose depot development. Beside the established gut microbiota dysbiosis we and others identified a leaky gut in obese patients and animal models as notably characterized by the existence of a tissue microbiota in the adipose fat pads. To identify its potential role, we here sequenced the bacterial 16S rRNA genes within the visceral adipose depot of obese patients. Immense surgical, biochemical and bioinformatic care were taken to avoid environmental contaminants. We performed different statistical discriminant analyses to identify specific signatures and constructed network of interactions between variables. The data show that a specific 16SrRNA gene signature was composed of numerous bacterial families discriminating lean versus obese and extremely obese patients. Burkholderiaceae, Yearsiniaceae, and Xanthomonadaceae were the main discriminant families, notably all gram negative. Interestingly, the Morganellaceae were totally absent from non-obese while preponderant in all obese patients. To generate hypotheses regarding their potential role we inferred metabolic pathways from the 16SrRNA gene signatures. We identified several pathways associated with adenosyl-cobalamine previously described to be linked with adipose tissue development. We further identified chorismate biosynthesis involved in aromatic amino-acid metabolism which could be important players. This innovative approach generates novel hypotheses regarding the gut to adipose tissue axis in obesity.