Henrik Munch Roager

Henrik Munch Roager

Associate Professor

ORCID: 0000-0002-2504-8313

Scopus Author ID: 57192066846

Henrik Munch Roager is an Associate Professor in the Department of Nutrition, Exercise and Sports, at University of Copenhagen, and the group leader of the Microbiome & Metabolomics research group. He and his group seek to advance nutrition research by understanding the mechanisms by which the gut microbiota contributes to food digestion and health, and to accelerate this knowledge toward personalised nutrition strategies and novel food products. Henrik is specialised in combining the fields of metabolomics, gut microbiome, and human nutrition with the purpose of studying diet-microbiota interactions in human intervention and cohort studies. He holds a PhD from the Technical University of Denmark (2016) and a M.Sc.Eng. from the Technical University of Denmark (2012). He is a recipient of the British Nutrition Foundation (BNF) Drummond Early Career Scientist Award (2019), and received recently a prestigious Sapere Aude: DFF-Starting Grant (2020) to establish his own group at University of Copenhagen.

Master Thesis Opportunities

We are looking for highly motivated masters students (with an interest in microbiology/chemistry/nutrition/bioinformatics) to perform their thesis or project work in our group. Please reach out to us and hear more.  

Primary fields of research

Our research focuses on understanding how our diet shapes the gut microbiome, how gut microbes digest our food and how the resulting small diet-derived molecules (metabolites) interact with our physiology in health and disease. Our work involves multiple disciplines including nutrition, chemistry, microbiology and bioinformatics. We conduct human dietary intervention studies and cohort studies and profile the metabolome (collection of all small molecules) in stool, blood and urine using targeted and untargeted liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS) based metabolomics. Furthermore, we collaborate with leading microbiome researchers around Europe and experts in immunology and intestinal host receptors to elucidate host-microbial cross-talk.

Introduction: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6EBCUKyp2F8

Current research projects:
  • Diet-derived gut microbial metabolites to modulate gut motility in infants (MOTILITY)
  • Towards Personalized Dietary Recommendations Based on the Interaction between Diet, Microbiome and Abiotic Conditions in the Gut (PRIMA)
  • Microbiome-Metabolome Interactions in the TwinsUK and KORA cohorts (DINAMIC)
  • Interactions between diet and gut microbia and the potential of modulating these interactions for the prevention of metabolic dysfunction and cardiovascular complications in humans (DINAMIC)
  • Bifidobacteria and the development of the immune system early in life (BIFIDO)
  • Microbial tryptophan metabolites in health and disease
  • Microbial enterotypes in personalized nutrition and obesity management

Previous research projects:

  • A personal microbiome-dependent glucose response (MIGLUCOSE)
  • Mediteranean diet, the microbiome and metabolome (DINAMIC)
  • The effects of a low-gluten diet on the microbiome in healthy adults (3G center)
  • The effects of a wholegrain-rich diet on the microbiome in healthy adults (3G center)
  • Colonic transit time and the gut microbial composition, diversity and metabolism (3G center)
  • Neonatal Gut Community Pertubation by Antibiotics
  • Faecal transplantation of obesity-associated microbes
  • The effects of gluten (gliadin) on the gut microbiome and host physiology (3G center)
  • Effects of glyphosate on the gut microbial composition and metabolism

Possible conflicts of interest

Scientific Expert on 'Microbiome Signature Project', Medicon Valley Alliance
Consultant for Clinical Microbiomics A/S, SNIPR Biome

Selected publications

  1. Published

    Bifidobacterium species associated with breastfeeding produce aromatic lactic acids in the infant gut

    Laursen, M. F., Sakanaka, M., von Burg, N., Mörbe, U., Andersen, D., Moll, J. M., Pekmez, C. T., Rivollier, A., Michaelsen, Kim F., Mølgaard, Christian, Lind, M. V., Dragsted, Lars Ove, Katayama, T., Frandsen, H. L., Vinggaard, A. M., Bahl, M. I., Brix, Susanne, Agace, W., Licht, T. R. & Roager, Henrik Munch, 2021, In: Nature Microbiology. 6, 11, p. 1367-1382 16 p.

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review

  2. Published

    Mediterranean diet intervention in overweight and obese subjects lowers plasma cholesterol and causes changes in the gut microbiome and metabolome independently of energy intake

    Meslier, V., Laiola, M., Roager, Henrik Munch, De Filippis, F., Roume, H., Quinquis, B., Giacco, R., Mennella, I., Ferracane, R., Pons, N., Pasolli, E., Rivellese, A., Dragsted, Lars Ove, Vitaglione, P., Ehrlich, S. D. & Ercolini, D., 2020, In: Gut. 69, 7, p. 1258-1268 11 p.

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review

  3. Published

    Microbial tryptophan catabolites in health and disease

    Roager, Henrik Munch & Licht, T. R., 2018, In: Nature Communications. 9, 10 p., 3294.

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Review › Research › peer-review

  4. Published

    A low-gluten diet induces changes in the intestinal microbiome of healthy Danish adults

    Hansen, L. B. S., Roager, Henrik Munch, Søndertoft, N. B., Gøbel, R. J., Kristensen, M. B., Vallès-Colomer, M., Vieira-Silva, S., Ibrügger, S., Lind, M. V., Mærkedahl, R. B., Bahl, M. I., Madsen, M. L., Havelund, J., Falony, G., Tetens, Inge , Nielsen, Trine, Allin, K. H., Frandsen, H. L., Hartmann, Bolette, Holst, Jens Juul, Sparholt, M. H., Holck, J., Blennow, Andreas, Moll, J. M., Meyer, A. S., Hoppe, C., Poulsen, J. H., Carvalho, V., Sagnelli, D., Dalgaard, M. D., Christensen, A. F., Lydolph, M., Ross, A. B., Villas-Bôas, S. G., Brix, S., Sicheritz-Pontén, T., Buschard, K., Linneberg, Allan René, Rumessen, J. J., Ekstrøm, Claus Thorn, Ritz, C., Kristiansen, Karsten, Nielsen, H. B., drb459, drb459, Færgeman, N. J., Raes, J., Frøkiær, Hanne, Hansen, Torben, Lauritzen, Lotte, Gupta, R., Licht, T. R. & Pedersen, Oluf Borbye, 2018, In: Nature Communications. 9, 13 p., 4630.

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review

  5. Published

    Whole grain-rich diet reduces body weight and systemic low-grade inflammation without inducing major changes of the gut microbiome: a randomised cross-over trial

    Roager, Henrik Munch, Vogt, J. K., Kristensen, M. B., Hansen, L. B. S., Ibrügger, S., Mærkedahl, R. B., Bahl, M. I., Lind, M. V., Nielsen, R. L., Frøkiær, Hanne, Gøbel, R. J., Landberg, R., Ross, A. B., Brix, S., Holck, J., Meyer, A. S., Sparholt, M. H., Christensen, A. F., Carvalho, V., Hartmann, Bolette, Holst, Jens Juul, Rumessen, J. J., Linneberg, Allan René, Sicheritz-Pontén, T., Dalgaard, M. D., Blennow, Andreas, Frandsen, H. L., Villas-Bôas, S., Kristiansen, Karsten, drb459, drb459, Hansen, Torben, Ekstrøm, Claus Thorn, Ritz, C., Nielsen, H. B., Pedersen, Oluf Borbye, Gupta, R., Lauritzen, Lotte & Licht, T. R., Jan 2019, In: Gut. 68, 1, p. 83-93 11 p.

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review

  6. Published

    Colonic transit time is related to bacterial metabolism and mucosal turnover in the gut

    Roager, Henrik Munch, Hansen, L. B. S., Bahl, M. I., Frandsen, H. L., Carvalho, V., Gøbel, R. J., Dalgaard, M. D., Plichta, D. R., Sparholt, M. H., drb459, drb459, Hansen, Torben, Sicheritz-Ponten, T., Nielsen, H. B., Pedersen, Oluf Borbye, Lauritzen, Lotte, Kristensen, M. B., Gupta, R. & Licht, T. R., 2016, In: Nature Microbiology. 1, 9, 9 p., 16093.

    Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review

ID: 188939154