Scientists find a gut microbe that works as a natural alternative to Ozempic
Science has made life way easier than it could ever have been without it. From antidotes and vaccines to alternatives, when science is at work, everything is possible.
In a surprising turn of events, scientists may have just found a way to naturally regulate blood sugar levels and sugar cravings without the use of injectables such as Ozempic.
A gut microbe and its metabolites proved to be the key in unlocking the natural process in humans and mice due to the compound it produced during digestion, as per a
study
published in Nature Microbiology.
Researchers led by a team at Jiangnan University in China showed how they can "orchestrate the secretion of glucagon-like peptide-1" in diabetic mice by increasing the abundance of this particular gut microbe.
Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) is a hormone that is naturally produced by the body and helps it regulate blood sugar levels and feelings of fullness.
Its release is stimulated by certain foods and gut microbes, and its mechanism of action is mimicked by drugs like semaglutide, the ingredient behind Ozempic.
Ozempic comes in as a saviour for people with type 2 diabetes who have an impaired GLP-1 function, thus causing issues with blood sugar control. These drugs mimic the natural processes in the body, and while they are highly effective, researchers do want to probe how to get the body to produce more GLP-1 on its own.
"A growing body of research has revealed that our cravings for dietary components originate from signals sent from the gut, a key organ in transmitting dietary preferences," explained the authors in the paper.
"However, which genes, gut flora, and metabolites in the gut microenvironment are involved in the regulation of sugar preference is currently unclear."
Which gut microbe is it?
Image credits: Getty Images
The research suggests gut microbes like Bacteroides vulgatus and their metabolites may help shape a person's sweet tooth.
In the experiments, if mice could not produce a gut protein called Ffar4, the gut colonies of B.vulgatus reduced. This, in turn, reduced the release of a hormone called FGF21, which it connected to sugar cravings.
The GLP-1 options when used in mice, are known to stimulate FGF21. Meanwhile, in humans, some studies suggest that those with variants of the FGF21 hormone are about 205 times more likely to be top-ranking consumers of sweet foods.
In a blood analysis of 60 participants with type 2diabetes and 24 healthy controls, researchers in China found that Ffar4 mutations that reduce FGF21 production are linked to an increased preference for sugar, "which may be an important contributor to the development of diabetes."
However, when mice were treated with a metabolite of B.vulgatus, it boosted GLP-1 secretion and also triggered the secretion of FGF21. This meant more blood sugar control and less sugar cravings in mice.
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