TY - JOUR
T1 - Dietary Intervention with Resistant Starch-Rich Unripe Plantain Flour Restores Gut Microbiome–Metabolome Axis and Ameliorates Type 2 Diabetes in Rats
AU - Fu, Jinfeng
AU - Liu, Cancan
AU - Tu, Shiyun
AU - Liu, Hongjie
AU - Liu, Zixin
AU - He, Weidi
AU - Dong, Lu
AU - Yi, Ganjun
AU - Xia, Yiji
AU - Wang, Juan
AU - Sheng, Ou
N1 - Funding information:
This research was funded by National Key Research and Development Program of China (grant number 2023YFD2300802-1), Guangdong Provincial Modern Agricultural Industry Technology System Innovation Team Construction Program (grant number 2024CXTD09), the earmarked fund for CARS (grant number CARS-31-01), the Science and Technology Planning Project of Guangzhou Municipal Science and Technology Bureau (grant number 2024A04J3583); the Scientific Research Foundation for the Introduction of Talent, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences (grant number R2022YJ-YB3026).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2025 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
PY - 2025/12/1
Y1 - 2025/12/1
N2 - Plantain (Musa spp., AAB group) possesses a complex triploid genetics originating from interspecific hybridization, which underlies its agronomic traits and nutritional composition, making it a vital global staple food crop. Unripe plantain flour (UPF), a rich source of resistant starch (RS), has demonstrated anti-diabetic properties in diabetic rats, yet its mechanisms of action remain unclear. This study investigated whether unripe plantain flour attenuates type 2 diabetic traits in rats made diabetic with a high-fat diet plus streptozotocin through regulation of the gut microbiome–metabolome axis, including short-chain fatty acids and bile acids. We found that UPF intervention significantly ameliorated gut microbiota dysbiosis. It enriched beneficial bacteria, particularly SCFA producers (Lachnoclostridium, Blautia, Butyricicoccus) and others (Bifidobacterium, Akkermansia), while inhibiting harmful genera (Romboutsia, Allobaculum). Consequently, UPF altered bile-acid composition by lowering hydrophobic species (e.g., cholic acid and deoxycholic acid) while elevating hydrophilic species (e.g., ursodeoxycholic acid and tauroursodeoxycholic acid). It also enhanced the excretion of secondary bile acids (lithocholic acid). These coordinated changes in the gut ecosystem are conducive to improved glycolipid metabolism. Spearman correlation analysis further reinforced the close relationships between the altered microbiota and metabolites. Our results elucidate that UPF exerts its anti-diabetic effects by remodeling the gut microbiota and modulating its associated metabolites, highlighting a novel dietary intervention strategy for diabetes management.
AB - Plantain (Musa spp., AAB group) possesses a complex triploid genetics originating from interspecific hybridization, which underlies its agronomic traits and nutritional composition, making it a vital global staple food crop. Unripe plantain flour (UPF), a rich source of resistant starch (RS), has demonstrated anti-diabetic properties in diabetic rats, yet its mechanisms of action remain unclear. This study investigated whether unripe plantain flour attenuates type 2 diabetic traits in rats made diabetic with a high-fat diet plus streptozotocin through regulation of the gut microbiome–metabolome axis, including short-chain fatty acids and bile acids. We found that UPF intervention significantly ameliorated gut microbiota dysbiosis. It enriched beneficial bacteria, particularly SCFA producers (Lachnoclostridium, Blautia, Butyricicoccus) and others (Bifidobacterium, Akkermansia), while inhibiting harmful genera (Romboutsia, Allobaculum). Consequently, UPF altered bile-acid composition by lowering hydrophobic species (e.g., cholic acid and deoxycholic acid) while elevating hydrophilic species (e.g., ursodeoxycholic acid and tauroursodeoxycholic acid). It also enhanced the excretion of secondary bile acids (lithocholic acid). These coordinated changes in the gut ecosystem are conducive to improved glycolipid metabolism. Spearman correlation analysis further reinforced the close relationships between the altered microbiota and metabolites. Our results elucidate that UPF exerts its anti-diabetic effects by remodeling the gut microbiota and modulating its associated metabolites, highlighting a novel dietary intervention strategy for diabetes management.
KW - bile acids
KW - diabetes mellitus
KW - gut microbiota
KW - short-chain fatty acids
KW - type 2 diabetes
KW - unripe plantain flour
UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105024575012
U2 - 10.3390/foods14233996
DO - 10.3390/foods14233996
M3 - Journal article
AN - SCOPUS:105024575012
SN - 2304-8158
VL - 14
JO - Foods
JF - Foods
IS - 23
M1 - 3996
ER -
