Dietary Polyphenols Promote Growth of the Gut Bacterium Akkermansia muciniphila and Attenuate High-Fat Diet–Induced Metabolic Syndrome

Dietary polyphenols protect against metabolic syndrome, despite limited absorption and digestion, raising questions about their mechanism of action. We hypothesized that one mechanism may involve the gut microbiota. To test this hypothesis, C57BL/6J mice were fed a high-fat diet (HFD) containing 1% Concord grape polyphenols (GP). Relative to vehicle controls, GP attenuated several effects of HFD feeding, including weight gain, adiposity, serum inflammatory markers (tumor necrosis factor [TNF]α, interleukin [IL]-6, and lipopolysaccharide), and glucose intolerance. GP lowered intestinal expression of inflammatory markers (TNFα, IL-6, inducible nitric oxide synthase) and a gene for glucose absorption (Glut2). GP…

• NI
  National Institutes of Health

  Award: F32DK101154
• NI
  National Institute of Food and Agriculture

  Awards: 2011-33610-30489, 2012-33610-20106
• NC
  National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine

  Award: P50AT002776-01