Chronic Oral Administration of Mineral Oil Compared With Corn Oil: Effects on Gut Permeability and Plasma Inflammatory and Lipid Biomarkers

Comparison of the efficacy of fish oil and probiotic supplementation on glucose and lipid metabolism in patients with type 2 diabetes: a systematic review and network meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Abnormalities in glucose and lipid metabolism contribute to the progression and exacerbation of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Fish oil and probiotics are dietary supplements that have the potential to improve glucose and lipid metabolism. However, their efficacy remains unclear in T2DM patients.

METHODS

PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane Library were retrieved to collect randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on the efficacy of fish oil or probiotic supplementation in T2DM patients from the database inception to December 13, 2023. Primary outcome indicators encompassed glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), homeostatic model assessment for insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and blood lipid profile (triglyceride (TG) and total cholesterol (TC). Secondary outcome indicators included inflammatory markers such as tumor necrosis factor -α (TNF-α) and adipocytokine (including leptin and adiponectin). The R software was used for statistical analysis, and GraphPad Prism was used for figure rendering.

RESULTS

A total of 60 RCTs involving 3845 T2DM patients were included in the analysis. The results showed that the probiotics (Bifidobacterium, Lactobacillus, Lactococcus, Propionibacterium, etc.) were more effective in reducing HOMA-IR than fish oil (Surca = 0.935). Bifidobacterium demonstrated the highest efficacy in reducing HbA1c levels (Surca = 0.963). Regarding lipid metabolism, fish oil was superior to probiotics in lowering TG and TC levels (Surca values of 0.978 and 0.902, respectively). Furthermore, fish oil outperformed probiotics in reducing TNF-α (Surca = 0.839) and leptin (Surca = 0.712), and increasing adiponectin levels (Surca = 0.742). Node-splitting analysis showed good consistency (P > 0.05 for direct, indirect, and network comparison across various interventions).

CONCLUSIONS

In T2DM patients, fish oil was more effective than probiotics in regulating lipid metabolism. Probiotics outperformed fish oil in regulating glucose metabolism particularly; specifically, Bifidobacterium showed higher efficacy in reducing blood glucose.

Translocation and Dissemination of Gut Bacteria after Severe Traumatic Brain Injury

Enterobacteriaceae are often found in the lungs of patients with severe Traumatic Brain Injury (sTBI). However, it is unknown whether these bacteria come from the gut microbiota. To investigate this hypothesis, the mice model of sTBI was used in this study. After sTBI, Chao1 and Simpson index peaking at 7 d in the lungs (p < 0.05). The relative abundance of Acinetobacter in the lungs increased to 16.26% at 7 d after sTBI. The chao1 index of gut microbiota increased after sTBI and peaked at 7 d (p < 0.05). Three hours after sTBI, the conditional pathogens such as Lachnoclostridium, Acinetobacter, Bacteroides and Streptococcus grew significantly. At 7 d and 14 d, the histology scores in the sTBI group were significantly higher than the control group (p < 0.05). The myeloperoxidase (MPO) activity increased at all-time points after sTBI and peaked at 7 d (p < 0.05). The LBP and sCD14 peaking 7 d after sTBI (p < 0.05). The Zonulin increased significantly at 3 d after sTBI and maintained the high level (p < 0.05). SourceTracker identified that the lung tissue microbiota reflects 49.69% gut source at 7 d after sTBI. In the small intestine, sTBI induced gastrointestinal dysfunction with increased apoptosis and decreasing antimicrobial peptides. There was a negative correlation between gut conditional pathogens and the expression level of antimicrobial peptides in Paneth cells. Our data indicate that gut bacteria translocated to the lungs after sTBI, and Paneth cells may regulate gut microbiota stability and translocation.