Modulation of gut microbiota by berberine and metformin during the treatment of high-fat diet-induced obesity in rats

Abstract

Accumulating evidence suggests that the gut microbiota is an important factor in mediating the development of obesity-related metabolic disorders, including type 2 diabetes. Metformin and berberine, two clinically effective drugs for treating diabetes, have recently been shown to exert their actions through modulating the gut microbiota. In this study, we demonstrated that metformin and berberine similarly shifted the overall structure of the gut microbiota in rats. Both drugs showed reverting effects on the high-fat diet-induced structural changes of gut microbiota. The diversity of gut microbiota was significantly reduced by both berberine- and metformin-treatments. Nearest shrunken centroids analysis identified 134 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) responding to the treatments, which showed close associations with the changes of obese phenotypes. Sixty out of the 134 OTUs were decreased by both drugs, while those belonging to putative short-chain fatty acids (SCFA)-producing bacteria, including Allobaculum, Bacteriodes, Blautia, Butyricoccus, and Phascolarctobacterium, were markedly increased by both berberine and, to a lesser extent, metformin. Taken together, our findings suggest that berberine and metformin showed similarity in modulating the gut microbiota, including the enrichment of SCFA-producing bacteria and reduction of microbial diversity, which may contribute to their beneficial effects to the host.

The antihyperlipidemic effects of fullerenol nanoparticles via adjusting the gut microbiota in vivo

“…The total excretion was the sum of percentages of 64 Cu in all the waste (∑ 0-t urine + ∑ 0-t feces) during 0-t not at the time point on microbe growth was markedly enhanced with additional surface hydroxyl groups [24,31,38]. The Fol1 NPs in the present paper (C 60 (OH) 7 (O) 8 ) had more peroxo or epoxy groups, while Fol113 NPs (C 60 (OH) 11 (O) 6 ) had more hydroxy groups. Physiochemical characterization showed that Fol113 NPs were more soluble, more hydrophilic, and formed smaller aggregates in water than Fol1.…”

“…1 and Additional file 1: Figure S1), fullerenol NPs were rich in complex -OH groups including peroxo groups to hydroxy groups and peroxo groups to epoxy groups [31,32]. Fol1 and Fol113 can be expressed by the general formulae C 60 (OH) 7 (O )8 and C 60 (OH) 11 (O) 6 , respectively. There may be furan-and pyran-like structures on fullerenol stereostructures (see Fig.…”

“…1b) indicated different types of functionalized carbon atoms on the carbon cages. With a general formula of C 60 (OH)m(O)n, Fol1 should be C 60 (OH) 7 (O) 8 and Fol113 should be C 60 (OH) 11 (O) 6 according to the XPS data ( Table 1). The characteristic fullerene peak of 720 (m/e) was detected in both fullerenol NPs on MALDI-TOF-MS which kept the features of fullerenes (Fig.…”

“…Structural changes in the gut microbiota are closely associated with various diseases, especially metabolic disorders such as obesity, insulinresistant diabetes, and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease [8,9]. Recent investigations revealed that the therapeutic effects of many medicines such as metformin [10], berberine [11], and Ganoderma lucidum [12] are at least partially attributable to their modulation of gut microbiota, demonstrating the powerful capacity of the gut microbiome to mediate the safety and efficacy of traditional oral drugs [13,14]. The impacts of nanoparticles (NPs) on the gut microbiota have also attracted increasing attention.…”

“…In the present study, we investigated the impacts of two fullerenol NPs (Fol1 C 60 (OH) 7 (O) 8 and Fol113 C 60 (OH) 11 (O) 6 ) on gut microbiota homeostasis in vivo. We also assessed the influences of fullerenol NPs on the SCFA-producing bacteria levels, fecal SFCA concentration, and lipid levels in blood and liver to establish a physiological association between the gut microbe-regulating roles of fullerenols and their pharmacological benefits.…”