Physical Activity–Gut Microbiome Interactions in Vertebrates: Mechanisms and Systemic Adaptations

The field of vertebrate physiology has been transformed by the recognition that the gut microbiome acts as an intricate regulatory hub, influencing diverse facets of host health. Notably, physical activity has emerged as a powerful environmental modulator of gut microbial communities, prompting meaningful alterations in microbial diversity, metabolic functions, and immune interactions within the host. The bidirectional nature of this relationship—whereby exercise shapes the microbiome and microbial metabolites, in turn, impact host performance and recovery—underscores the complexity of host-microbe symbiosis. Current research highlights the gut-muscle axis as a critical conduit of these interactions, revealing novel mechanisms such as the influence of gut-derived metabolites on muscle function and the impact of physical activity on gastrointestinal environment and microbial selection. Despite recent progress, key questions remain regarding the causal pathways underlying these relationships, the range of their conservation across vertebrate taxa, and how they translate to long-term adaptations or disease outcomes.This Research Topic aims to deepen our mechanistic understanding of the interplay between physical activity and the gut microbiome across vertebrate species. A central objective is to clarify the specific signals and pathways underpinning gut-muscle communication, with particular emphasis on metabolic and immunological mediators including SCFAs, secondary bile acids, and microbial peptides. The Research Topic also seeks to elucidate how exercise-induced changes in gut physiology—such as shifts in intestinal permeability, immune tone, and substrate availability—drive microbiome adaptation, as well as how these microbial shifts reciprocally influence systemic host function. By integrating findings from diverse vertebrate models, we endeavor to distinguish evolutionarily conserved mechanisms from host-specific adaptations, and to identify key conditions under which microbiome-activity interactions are therapeutically relevant.Our scope is focused on vertebrate models and seeks both mechanistic studies and systems-level analyses that probe the intimate feedback between exercise and gut microbial ecology. Comparative and methodological innovations are encouraged, provided they bring novel insight into conserved or divergent patterns. To gather further insights in the mechanisms and systemic effects of vertebrate physical activity–microbiome interplay, we welcome original research articles, reviews, mini-reviews and all type of articles accepted by the journal addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:o Exercise-driven shifts in gut microbial diversity, composition, and function across vertebrate species and life stageso Mechanistic exploration of the gut-muscle axis, including myokine–microbiome crosstalk and metabolite-mediated signalingo Gut barrier function and intestinal permeability in response to physical activity, and underlying microbial effectorso Microbial contributions to host energy balance, substrate use, and metabolic flexibility in physically active versus sedentary stateso Immunomodulation at the gut-exercise interface and the role of microbiota in mucosal and systemic immune responseso Comparative physiology and animal models revealing conserved or divergent microbiome-exercise adaptationso Exercise as a microbiome-targeted intervention for metabolic, inflammatory, or musculoskeletal diseaseo Methodological advances: multi-omics, germ-free/gnotobiotic models, and longitudinal approaches in exercise–microbiome research Topic editors: Daniele Magistro, Aneta Sokal-Dembowska, Sara Jarmakiewicz-Czaja, Lei Quan Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/77094/physical-activity-gut-microbiome-interactions-in-vertebrates-mechanisms-and-systemic-adaptations