Bacteria discovered that converts choline to trimethylamine

It is generally accepted that in humans the conversion of choline to trimethylamine is caused by anaerobic ;bacteria. However it was not known which bacteria may be responsible for this conversion.

Recently a group of researchers at Harvard University have proven that sulfate-reducing bacteria are capable of converting choline to TMA. At the moment it is not known if this is what causes TMA production from choline in the human gut, but it seems very possible. This is interesting information as for example it may make antibiotic choice more suitable, or may even lead to research that can block the TMA conversion or enable more specific decisions to be made about probiotics. So this seems to be the first time it has been shown how choline is converted to TMA by a bacteria.

...Our discovery provides the predictive capabilities needed to identify choline utilization clusters in numerous bacterial genomes, underscoring the importance and prevalence of this metabolic activity within the human microbiota and the environment.

Abstract : conversion of choline to TMA by bacteria