The gut microbiota modulates the rate of ALS progression

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a devastating neurodegenerative disease that can progress at varying rates; however, the factors influencing progression rates in ALS patients remain unknown. In this study, we report distinct microbiome and metabolomic signatures associated with ALS progression rates. Rapid progression rates were transferable to a genetic mouse model of ALS following a fecal microbiota transplant (FMT) from patients exhibiting rapid disease progression. By focusing on microbial and metabolic markers shared between the FMT donors and mouse recipients, we identified Phocaeicola vulgatus as a microbial biomarker for slow progression. Additionally, we found strain-level differences in P. vulgatus among ALS patients and isolated a strain that partially alleviated disease in mice that received microbiota linked with rapid progression. Identifying microbiota that accelerates ALS progression, along with strains of P. vulgatus and correlated metabolites that mitigate such accelerated diseases, reveals new avenues for potential therapeutic interventions.