The Shaping Effects Of Intermittent Fasting On Gut Microbiota In Obesity

Obesity is a chronic inflammatory disease with excessive accumulation of body fat that is seriously harmful to human health,and consequently a risk factor for a variety of chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.The precise cause and the exact pathogenesis of obesity is still,however,not fully understood.During last decades,extensive studies demonstrated that gut microbiota dysbiosis is strongly associated with the onset of obesity.This fact raises the attractive possibility that manipulating the gut microbiota could prevent obesity.Intermittent fasting is a popular time-restricted diet intervention that has been shown to confer health benefits in experimental studies,but its impacts on the gut microbiota in obese human and the underlying mechanism remains elusive.This study aimed to investigate the effects of one mouth of a 16-hour daily fasting(OMDF)on the gut microbiota both in obese mice and humans.We found1.In mice,OMDF intervention increased the gut microbiota diversity and alters its composition.The abundance of Lachnospiraceae and Ruminococcaceae families were increased and the family Xanthomonadaceae was decreased.OMDF reduced body weight and the fat content of the mice by a mechanism in which the size of adipocytes was shrinked.Metabolic disorders such as insulin resistance and hepatic steatosis were significantly improved upon OMDF treatment,accompanied by reduced food intake.2.In obese people,OMDF reduced calorie intake,body weight and fat content.Among the blood parameters tested,glutamyl transferase(GGT)and triglyceride(TG)levels were reduced.OMDF changed the structure of the gut microbiota and increased its diversity.The family Lachnospiraceae was increased,while Prevotellaceae was decreased.Importantly,the correlation between gut microbiota and obesity has been reprogrammed by OMDF intervention.In conclusion,OMDF intervention alters the structure of the gut microbiota with an emphasize on the increase of short-chain fatty acid-producing Lachnospiraceae members,which is linked to improvement in obesity-related metabolic disorders.This study thus provides various insights into the important role of the gut microbiota in fasting-provoked effects on improving obesity.