Circadian misalignment associates with inflammation, gut barrier, and microbiome composition in humans with obesity
Abstract
Circadian disruption has been linked to metabolic syndrome, but the biological links between circadian phenotypes and metabolic inflammation in humans remain incompletely characterized. We analyzed 87 adults with obesity from a randomized clinical trial to examine whether gut microbiome features and intestinal permeability relate to circadian misalignment and metabolic inflammation. Circadian phenotype was assessed using chronotype and meal timing, metabolic inflammation through a composite score of multiple biological measures, and gut permeability using sugar absorption testing. Late chronotype was associated with greater metabolic syndrome burden, while circadian misalignment was associated with increased gut permeability and inflammation, an association stronger among participants with higher permeability. These patterns co-occurred with lower abundance of short-chain fatty acid-associated bacteria, and intervention-related changes in permeability corresponded with changes in these taxa. These findings link circadian phenotypes with gut barrier and microbial features relevant to metabolic risk in obesity.
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BibTeX
@article{khoshaba2026circadian,
title = {{Circadian misalignment associates with inflammation, gut barrier, and microbiome composition in humans with obesity}},
author = {Edena Khoshaba and Xiangsheng Huang and Connor Cheek and Ankur Naqib and Maliha W. Shaikh and Mohamed Abdel-Mohsen and Mahboobeh Mahdavinia and Heather E. Rasmussen and Ali Keshavarzian and Faraz Bishehsari},
journal = {iScience},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1016/j.isci.2026.117892},
url = {https://www.cell.com/iscience/fulltext/S2589-0042(26)03275-X},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Circadian misalignment associates with inflammation, gut barrier, and microbiome composition in humans with obesity
AU - Edena Khoshaba
AU - Xiangsheng Huang
AU - Connor Cheek
AU - Ankur Naqib
AU - Maliha W. Shaikh
AU - Mohamed Abdel-Mohsen
AU - Mahboobeh Mahdavinia
AU - Heather E. Rasmussen
AU - Ali Keshavarzian
AU - Faraz Bishehsari
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/14
JO - iScience
DO - 10.1016/j.isci.2026.117892
UR - https://www.cell.com/iscience/fulltext/S2589-0042(26)03275-X
AB - Circadian disruption has been linked to metabolic syndrome, but the biological links between circadian phenotypes and metabolic inflammation in humans remain incompletely characterized. We analyzed 87 adults with obesity from a randomized clinical trial to examine whether gut microbiome features and intestinal permeability relate to circadian misalignment and metabolic inflammation. Circadian phenotype was assessed using chronotype and meal timing, metabolic inflammation through a composite score of multiple biological measures, and gut permeability using sugar absorption testing. Late chronotype was associated with greater metabolic syndrome burden, while circadian misalignment was associated with increased gut permeability and inflammation, an association stronger among participants with higher permeability. These patterns co-occurred with lower abundance of short-chain fatty acid-associated bacteria, and intervention-related changes in permeability corresponded with changes in these taxa. These findings link circadian phenotypes with gut barrier and microbial features relevant to metabolic risk in obesity.
SN - 2589-0042
ER -