# Microbiome and Worsening Glycemia Among Mexican Americans in Starr County, Texas

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS HLTH SCI CTR HOUSTON · 2021 · $580,341

## Abstract

The human microbiome varies by anatomic site, physiologic state, and time as it responds to internal and external
stimuli. While accumulating data show associations with type 2 diabetes, there is a paucity of data on the
progression from normal glycemia to prediabetes and diabetes. The longitudinal study proposed here will allow
evaluating relationships of the microbiome with prediabetes development and progression to type 2 diabetes
while separating the confounding effects of temporality. This study will evaluate 600 Mexican American
individuals from Starr County, Texas at baseline and 3, 6, 12, 24, and 36 months later. Most importantly, these
individuals will be composed of 300 with normal glycemia and 300 with prediabetes. Stool and nasal microbiomes
will be evaluated. Evaluating 600 Mexican Americans in Starr County, Texas at 6 points in time over 3 years and
from two microbiome sites will generate 7,200 samples and associated data to achieve the following: Aim 1.
Determine the influence of time and seasonality on nasal and gut microbiome diversity, relative abundance, and
change through 16S ribosomal RNA sequencing of stool and nasal samples from 600 Mexican American
individuals without diabetes - half with prediabetes and half with normal glycemia. Aim 2. Test hypotheses that
the development of prediabetes and progression to type 2 diabetes will be correlated with and impacted by the
diversity and abundance of the gut and nasal microbiomes and that these microbiomes interact. Aim 3. From
stool and nasal samples of incident cases of prediabetes and type 2 diabetes and from those with the greatest
changes in relative abundance and diversity from one time point to the next, determine the species driving the
changes through whole genome sequencing metagenomics on 680 specimens. We also propose two
exploratory/opportunistic aims. One, because species level determinations in Aim 3 will provide data on the DNA
virome and two, because all individuals have been previously genotyped and whole exome sequenced. The
sample sizes for these opportunistic aims are modest, but the uniqueness of the data merit evaluation. Aim 4:
Conduct a preliminary evaluation of the distribution, abundance, and diversity of the DNA virome from those
samples being sequenced to the species level in Aim 3. Aim 5. Determine the effects of rare and common
human genetic variation on the composition and dynamics of the nasal and gut microbiomes over time. The
proposed longitudinal analyses are paramount to better understanding the impact of the microbiome on the
development of prediabetes, progression to type 2 diabetes, and their reciprocal relationships. They will identify
genera most associated with change and will identify those species that drive changes in relative abundance
and/or diversity. Perhaps most significant is that the microbiome offers a readily modifiable target. However,
before that, there must be an understanding of normal variation over time and its relations...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10151604
- **Project number:** 5R01DK116378-05
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS HLTH SCI CTR HOUSTON
- **Principal Investigator:** ERIC L BROWN
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $580,341
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2017-09-15 → 2024-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10151604

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10151604, Microbiome and Worsening Glycemia Among Mexican Americans in Starr County, Texas (5R01DK116378-05). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10151604. Licensed CC0.

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