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Review
. 2022 Jan 1;23(1):480.
doi: 10.3390/ijms23010480.

The Role of the Gut Microbiota in the Pathogenesis of Diabetes

Weronika Bielka  1 , Agnieszka Przezak  1 , Andrzej Pawlik  1
Affiliations
Review

The Role of the Gut Microbiota in the Pathogenesis of Diabetes

Weronika Bielka et al. Int J Mol Sci. .

Abstract

Diabetes mellitus is a significant clinical and therapeutic problem because it can lead to serious long-term complications. Its pathogenesis is not fully understood, but there are indications that dysbiosis can play a role in the development of diabetes, or that it appears during the course of the disease. Changes in microbiota composition are observed in both type 1 diabetes (T1D) and type 2 diabetes (T2D) patients. These modifications are associated with pro-inflammation, increased intestinal permeability, endotoxemia, impaired β-cell function and development of insulin resistance. This review summarizes the role of the gut microbiota in healthy individuals and the changes in bacterial composition that can be associated with T1D or T2D. It also presents new developments in diabetes therapy based on influencing the gut microbiota as a promising method to alter the course of diabetes. Moreover, it highlights the lacking data and suggests future directions needed to prove the causal relationship between dysbiosis and diabetes, both T1D and T2D.

Keywords: diabetes; microbiota; therapy.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The role of the gut microbiota in maintaining host homeostasis.
Figure 2
Figure 2
The possible influence of dysbiosis on type 1 diabetes development. A description is given in the text above.
Figure 3
Figure 3
The possible influence of dysbiosis on type 2 diabetes development. A description is given in the text above.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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