Department of Microbiology, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York 14853, USA.
Curr Opin Gastroenterol. 2010 Jan;26(1):5-11. doi: 10.1097/MOG.0b013e328333d751.
Obesity was once rare, but the last few decades have seen a rapid expansion of the proportion of obese individuals worldwide. Recent work has shown obesity to be associated with a shift in the representation of the dominant phyla of bacteria in the gut, both in humans and animal models. This review summarizes the latest research into the association between microbial ecology and host adiposity, and the mechanisms by which microbes in the gut may mediate host metabolism in the context of obesity.
Studies of the effect of excess body fat on the abundances of different bacteria taxa in the gut generally show alterations in the gastrointestinal microbiota, and changes during weight loss. The gastrointestinal microbiota have been shown to impact insulin resistance, inflammation, and adiposity via interactions with epithelial and endocrine cells.
Large-scale alterations of the gut microbiota and its microbiome (gene content) are associated with obesity and are responsive to weight loss. Gut microbes can impact host metabolism via signaling pathways in the gut, with effects on inflammation, insulin resistance, and deposition of energy in fat stores. Restoration of the gut microbiota to a healthy state may ameliorate the conditions associated with obesity and help maintain a healthy weight.
肥胖曾较为罕见，但在过去几十年中，全球肥胖人群的比例迅速增加。最近的研究表明，肥胖与肠道中优势菌群的代表性发生变化有关，这在人类和动物模型中均有体现。本文总结了最新的关于肠道微生物生态与宿主肥胖之间关联的研究，以及肠道微生物在肥胖背景下通过与上皮细胞和内分泌细胞相互作用调节宿主代谢的机制。
关于多余体脂对肠道中不同细菌分类群丰度影响的研究通常表明，胃肠道微生物群发生了改变，并且在体重减轻期间也发生了改变。胃肠道微生物群已被证明通过与上皮细胞和内分泌细胞的相互作用，影响胰岛素抵抗、炎症和肥胖。
肠道微生物群及其微生物组（基因含量）的大规模改变与肥胖有关，并对体重减轻有反应。肠道微生物可以通过肠道中的信号通路影响宿主代谢，对炎症、胰岛素抵抗和能量在脂肪储存中的沉积产生影响。将肠道微生物群恢复到健康状态可能会改善与肥胖相关的状况，并有助于维持健康的体重。
