Cordyceps militaris extracts and cordycepin ameliorate type 2 diabetes mellitus by modulating the gut microbiota and metabolites

Xinyuan Liu; Mengqian Dun; Tongtong Jian; Yuqing Sun; Mingyu Wang; Guoying Zhang; Jianya Ling

doi:10.3389/fphar.2023.1134429

Cordyceps militaris extracts and cordycepin ameliorate type 2 diabetes mellitus by modulating the gut microbiota and metabolites

Front Pharmacol. 2023 Mar 9:14:1134429. doi: 10.3389/fphar.2023.1134429. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Xinyuan Liu¹, Mengqian Dun¹, Tongtong Jian², Yuqing Sun¹, Mingyu Wang¹, Guoying Zhang², Jianya Ling¹

Affiliations

¹ State Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology, Shandong University, Qingdao, SD, China.
² Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, SD, China.

Abstract

Introduction: Cordyceps militaris, which has many potential medicinal properties, has rarely been reported to alleviate type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Methods: The effects of C. militaris extracts (CE) and cordycepin (CCS) on high-fat diet and streptozotocin (STZ) induced T2DM mice were analysed by gut microbiome and metabolomics methods in this study. Results: The results demonstrated that glucose and lipid metabolism parameters, oxidative stress biomarkers and inflammation cytokines were down-regulated in the CCS and CE groups. A comparative analysis of the fecal samples from mice in the model and experimental groups showed that experimental groups resulted in a higher abundance of Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes. Conclusion: This study provides evidence that C. militaris can be used as a food supplement to relieve T2DM, which provides a promising prospect for new functional food in it.

Keywords: 16S rDNA; C. militaris; T2DM; gut microbiota; metabolomics; pathway.