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Cited by 210Gut microbiota and healthAdipokines, Inflammation, and Metabolic DiseasesRegulation of Appetite and Obesity

The intestinal microbiota and obesity

Kallus, Samuel J., Brandt, Lawrence J.·2012·Journal of Clinical Gastroenterology
DOI 10.1097/mcg.0b013e31823711fd
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Abstract

Obesity has been and continues to be an epidemic in the United States. Obesity has been addressed in multiple health initiatives, including Healthy People 2010, with no state meeting the proposed goal of a prevalence of obesity < 15% of the adult population. In contrast, obesity rates have continued to increase, with the self-reported prevalence of obesity among adults increasing by 1.1% from 2007 to the present. Indeed, since 2009, 33 states reported obesity prevalences of 25% or more with only 1 state reporting prevalence < 20%. There have been multiple approaches for the treatment of obesity, including fad diets, incentive-based exercise programs, and gastric bypass surgery; none of which have been optimal. In a murine model, it was shown that the majority of the intestinal microbiome consists of two bacterial phyla, the Bacteroidetes and the Firmicutes, and that the relative abundance of these two phyla differs among lean and obese mice; the obese mouse had a higher proportion of Firmicutes to Bacteroidetes (50% greater) than the lean mouse. The same results were appreciated in obese humans compared to lean subjects. The postulated explanation for this finding is that Firmicutes produce more complete metabolism of a given energy source than do Bacteroidetes, thus promoting more efficient absorption of calories and subsequent weight gain. Researchers were able to demonstrate that colonizing germ-free mice with the intestinal microbiome from obese mice led to an increased total body fat in the recipient mice despite a lack of change in diet. The converse, that, colonizing germ-free obese mice with the intestinal microbiome of thin mice causing a decreased total body fat in the recipient mice, has not yet been done. Other possible mechanisms by which the intestinal microbiome affects host obesity include induction of low-grade inflammation with lipopolysaccharide, regulation of host genes responsible for energy expenditure and storage, and hormonal communication between the intestinal microbiome and the host. The following review discusses the microbiome-obesity relationship and proposed mechanisms by which the intestinal microbiota is hypothesized to influence weight gain.

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  • The microbiome of obese individuals is capable of extracting more energy from the host diet compared with the microbiome of lean individuals.

    “The majority of women with PCOS are overweight or obese and evidence indicates that the microbiome of obese individuals is capable of extracting more energy from the host diet compared with the microbiome of lean individuals [132].”

    From Polycystic Ovary Syndrome: An Evolutionary Adaptation to Lifestyle and the Environment (2022) · cites this paper as [132]

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Authors
Kallus, S. J., & Brandt, L. J.
Affiliations
  • Georgetown University (US)
  • Albert Einstein College of Medicine (US)
Corresponding author
Kallus, Samuel J.
ORCID
Venue
Journal of Clinical Gastroenterology
Publisher
Ovid Technologies (Wolters Kluwer Health)
Published
2012-01
Volume
46
Issue
1
Pages
16-24
ISSN
0192-0790 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1097/mcg.0b013e31823711fd
OpenAlex
W2045458218
Cited by
210
References
12
Citations by year
2026: 5 · 2025: 2 · 2024: 12 · 2023: 9 · 2022: 20 · 2021: 27 · 2020: 16 · 2019: 15 · 2018: 16 · 2017: 18 · 2016: 19 · 2015: 19 · 2014: 12 · 2013: 14 · 2012: 6
FWCI
0.93
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Locations
  • Journal of Clinical Gastroenterology (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Gut microbiota and health
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Epidemiology › Adipokines, Inflammation, and Metabolic Diseases
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Endocrine and Autonomic Systems › Regulation of Appetite and Obesity
Keywords
gut microbiota, obesity, Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, germ-free mice, microbial colonization, low-grade inflammation, lipopolysaccharide, energy metabolism, host-microbe communication, obesity prevalence
MeSH terms
Adipose Tissue, Adult, Animals, Humans, Intestines, Obesity, United States, Weight Gain, Mice, Metagenome

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