NEW YORK (GenomeWeb) – The gut microbiomes of people with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease differ greatly from those of healthy people, according to a new study.

Previous work has suggested that the gut microbiome may influence the development of atherosclerosis. Microbes in the gut metabolize choline, phosphatidylcholine, and L-carnitine to produce trimethylamine (TMA), which is transformed in the liver into trimethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO), a major cause of atherosclerosis.