Abstract
Obesity has been associated with structural alterations in the gut microbiota, suggesting potential causality between specific microbial taxa and this disorder. Studies in animal models have also provided evidence for plausible gut microbiota mechanisms of action underlying body weight regulation. Yet evidence identifying which specific microbes contribute to or predict obesity is not completely consistent across studies. More recently, diet has also been shown to be primarily involved in regulating the microbiota structure initially related to obesity, suggesting that the role of microbes in energy balance is under the influence of diet. Controversy over the role of components of the gut microbiota in obesity has extended to bacteria, which although weakly related to body weight in observational and human intervention studies, are of interest due to their use as probiotics. This review focuses exclusively on human observational studies and probiotic intervention trials, excluding animal studies and studies in infants at early developmental stages, since such results cannot be extrapolated to human obesity at later stages in life. In this context, evidence for relationships between the gut microbiota composition and obesity and the possible role of probiotics is reviewed, discussing the strengths and weaknesses of the studies conducted to date.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 144-155 |
| Number of pages | 12 |
| Journal | Pharmacological Research |
| Volume | 69 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Mar 2013 |
Fingerprint
Keywords
- Human intervention trials
- Human observational studies
- Microbiota
- Obesity
- Probiotics
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Pharmacology
Cite this
Understanding the role of gut microbes and probiotics in obesity : How far are we? / Sanz, Yolanda; Rastmanesh, Reza; Agostonic, Carlo.
In: Pharmacological Research, Vol. 69, No. 1, 03.2013, p. 144-155.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Understanding the role of gut microbes and probiotics in obesity
T2 - How far are we?
AU - Sanz, Yolanda
AU - Rastmanesh, Reza
AU - Agostonic, Carlo
PY - 2013/3
Y1 - 2013/3
N2 - Obesity has been associated with structural alterations in the gut microbiota, suggesting potential causality between specific microbial taxa and this disorder. Studies in animal models have also provided evidence for plausible gut microbiota mechanisms of action underlying body weight regulation. Yet evidence identifying which specific microbes contribute to or predict obesity is not completely consistent across studies. More recently, diet has also been shown to be primarily involved in regulating the microbiota structure initially related to obesity, suggesting that the role of microbes in energy balance is under the influence of diet. Controversy over the role of components of the gut microbiota in obesity has extended to bacteria, which although weakly related to body weight in observational and human intervention studies, are of interest due to their use as probiotics. This review focuses exclusively on human observational studies and probiotic intervention trials, excluding animal studies and studies in infants at early developmental stages, since such results cannot be extrapolated to human obesity at later stages in life. In this context, evidence for relationships between the gut microbiota composition and obesity and the possible role of probiotics is reviewed, discussing the strengths and weaknesses of the studies conducted to date.
AB - Obesity has been associated with structural alterations in the gut microbiota, suggesting potential causality between specific microbial taxa and this disorder. Studies in animal models have also provided evidence for plausible gut microbiota mechanisms of action underlying body weight regulation. Yet evidence identifying which specific microbes contribute to or predict obesity is not completely consistent across studies. More recently, diet has also been shown to be primarily involved in regulating the microbiota structure initially related to obesity, suggesting that the role of microbes in energy balance is under the influence of diet. Controversy over the role of components of the gut microbiota in obesity has extended to bacteria, which although weakly related to body weight in observational and human intervention studies, are of interest due to their use as probiotics. This review focuses exclusively on human observational studies and probiotic intervention trials, excluding animal studies and studies in infants at early developmental stages, since such results cannot be extrapolated to human obesity at later stages in life. In this context, evidence for relationships between the gut microbiota composition and obesity and the possible role of probiotics is reviewed, discussing the strengths and weaknesses of the studies conducted to date.
KW - Human intervention trials
KW - Human observational studies
KW - Microbiota
KW - Obesity
KW - Probiotics
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84873713943&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84873713943&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.phrs.2012.10.021
DO - 10.1016/j.phrs.2012.10.021
M3 - Article
VL - 69
SP - 144
EP - 155
JO - Pharmacological Research
JF - Pharmacological Research
SN - 1043-6618
IS - 1
ER -