Type 2 diabetes (T2D), the most common form of diabetes, is one of the leading causes of death in the USA. Diet, genetics, environment, and the gut microbes are important factors causing T2D. However, the exactmechanisms by which these factors induce the disease are still unclear. Western diet-induced obesity mimickedthe conditions of metabolic  syndrome and T2D in mice. Concurrent changes in the bacterial abundance andcomposition in  ileum and stool of mice indicated that the metabolic alterations are associated  with microbes.Using a transkingdom network and causal inference analysis, we  identified candidate microbes that can potentiallymediate changes in metabolic  health. In line with our predictions, supplementing mice with the beneficial microbial  candidatesameliorated diet induced diabetes in mice. Transcriptomic studies  showed that these microbes improved metabolic  parameters by regulating  mitochondrial processes in the liver. Using systems biology network analyses,  followed by experimental validation, we identified key microbes and pathways regulatingglucose metabolism. This research aims to uncover the mechanisms of microbiota dependentglucose metabolism to advance treatment of T2D. SOURCE: Andrey Morgun (Andriy.Morgun@oregonstate.edu) -  Oregon State University

Pluto Bioinformatics

GSE136033: RNA-seq from the liver and ileum of mice on ND, WD, and WD with either Lactobacillus gasseri or Lactobacillus johnsonii