The gut microbiome may have an important influence on the development of diabetes mellitus type 2 (DM2). To better understand the DM2 pandemic in ethnic minority groups in China, we investigated and compared the composition and richness of the gut microbiota of healthy, normal glucose tolerant (NGT) individuals and DM2 patients from two ethnic minority groups in Xinjiang, northwest China, the Uygurs and Kazaks. The conserved V6 region of the 16S rRNA gene was amplified by PCR from the isolated DNA. The amplified DNA was sequenced and analyzed. An average of 4047 high quality reads of unique tag sequences were obtained from the 40 Uygurs and Kazaks. The 3 most dominant bacterial families among all participants, both healthy and DM2 patients, were the Ruminococcaceae, Lachnospiraceae, and Enterobacteriaceae. Significant differences in intestinal microbiota were found between the NGT individuals and DM2 patients, as well as between the two ethnic groups. Our findings shed new light on the gut microbiome in relation to DM2. The differentiated microbiota data may be used for potential biomarkers for DM2 diagnosis and prevention.

This study was designed to evaluate the epidemiology of type 2 diabetes and hypertension in Uygur and Kazak ethnic populations. A three-step stratified sampling method was used. Questionnaires, blood pressure, anthropometric measurement, and fasting blood glucose were monitored. In total, 1,571 Uygur and 2,913 Kazak subjects were randomly enrolled. The prevalence of type 2 diabetes and glucose intolerance was 5.55-and 1.90-fold higher, respectively, in Uygur than in the Kazak population (8.16 vs. 1.47%, P \ 0.001 and 3.29 vs. 1.73%, P \ 0.001). However, the prevalence of hypertension and obesity was significantly higher in the Kazak than in the Uygur population (hypertension: 43.52 vs. 31.98%, P \ 0.001; obesity: 25.0 vs. 14.5%, P \ 0.001, respectively). Our data suggest a significantly different prevalence in hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and type 2 diabetes between the two ethnic groups. The prevalence of type 2 diabetes was much lower, while the prevalence of hypertension was much higher associated with a higher incidence of obesity in the Kazak population. Individuals with a greater BMI and blood pressure were more prone to development of type 2 diabetes. Our data revealed that waist circumference of Kazak ethnics was greater than that of Uygur, even at the same BMI level. Serum fasting glucose was associated with different factors in Uygur and Kazak.

Lipopolysaccharides (LPS) from the outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria serve as endotoxin to exert potent immune responses. However, the effect of LPS on adipogenesis has not been elucidated. The present study was designed to examine the effect of LPS on adipogenesis in 3T3-L1 preadipocytes and possible mechanism(s) of action involved. Our results revealed that LPS challenge significantly suppressed adipogenesis in 3T3-L1 preadipocytes mainly through downregulated expression of the late adipogenic markers PPARγ and aP2 as well as AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) expression and activity. As an inflammatory factor, LPS was found to lead to an overt reduction in IκBα levels compared with the time-matched controls, consolidating its pro-inflammatory property in 3T3-L1 preadipocytes. Our data also revealed that LPS retarded adipogenesis, the effect of which was partially reversed by the selective inhibitor of IKKβ. IκBα was found to be involved in the anti-adipogenic effect of LPS. In conclusion, LPS is capable of inhibiting adipogenesis in 3T3-L1 adipocytes possibly through activation of NF-κB and inhibition of AMPK. With the activation of NF-κB pathway and inhibition of AMPK, LPS suppresses C/EBP α DNA-binding activity and the expression of late adipogenic markers PPARγ and aP2.

Ellagic acid (EA) present in many fruits and nuts serves as antiproliferation, anti-inflammatory, and antitumorigenic properties. However, the effect of EA on preadipocytes adipogenesis and its mechanism(s) have not been elucidated. The present study was designed to examine the effect of EA on adipogenesis in 3T3-L1 preadipocytes and underlying mechanism(s) of action involved. Data show that EA administration decreased the accumulation of lipid droplets. The inhibition was diminished when the addition of EA was delayed to days 2–4 of differentiation. Clonal expansion was reduced in the presence of EA. FACS analysis showed that EA blocked the cell cycle at the G1/S transition. EdU incorporation also confirmed that EA refrained cell from entering S phase. Our data also revealed that the differentiation-induced protein expression of Cyclin A and phosphorylation of the retinoblastoma protein (Rb) were impaired by EA. Differentiation-dependent expression and DNA-binding ability of C/EBPα were also inhibited by EA. Alterations in cell cycle-associated proteins may be important with respect to the antiadipogenic action of EA. In conclusion, EA is capable of inhibiting adipogenesis in 3T3-L1 adipocytes possibly through reduction of Cyclin A protein expression and Rb phosphorylation. With the blocking of G1/S phase transition, EA suppresses terminal differentiation and lipid accumulation in 3T3-L1 adipocytes.

J Clin Hypertens (Greenwich). 2010;12:741–745. ©2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. This study was designed to evaluate the prevalence of the metabolic syndrome (MetS), impaired fasting blood glucose (IFG), insulin resistance (IR), hypertriglyceridemia (HTG), and low high‐density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL‐C) in adult Uygur and Kazak populations. Questionnaires, blood pressure, anthropometric measurement, and fasting glucose were evaluated. The age‐adjusted prevalence of MetS and IFG was 3.43‐ and 1.47‐fold higher, respectively, in Uygurs compared with Kazaks. The prevalence of IR and HTG was 1.33‐ and 2.22‐fold higher, respectively, in Uygurs compared with Kazaks. In addition, the prevalence of low HDL‐C was 4.05‐fold higher in Uygurs compared with Kazaks. These data depicted greater risk for cardiometabolic syndrome in Uygurs compared with Kazaks. In addition, all prevalence with the exception of low HDL‐C was greater in men compared with women in both ethnic groups. For body mass index (BMI) <24, 24 to 28, and ≥28 kg/m2, the prevalence of MetS, HTG, and low HDL‐C was higher in Uygurs than Kazaks at the same BMI level. For individuals with a BMI between 24 and 28, the prevalence of IR but not IFG was significantly greater in Uygurs than Kazaks. At BMI ≥28, neither IFG nor IR was overtly different between the two ethnic groups.