Dysregulation of the gut microbiota and microbially derived metabolite production has been associated with metabolic disorders. Using metabolomics, Koh et al. identify levels of the amino acid-derived metabolite imidazole propionate to be elevated in the portal and peripheral blood of subjects with type 2 diabetes. Using an in vitro gut simulator, imidazole propionate was found to be a histidine-derived metabolite produced from microbial communities specific to subjects with type 2 diabetes. When injected into mice, imidazole propionate impaired glucose tolerance and insulin signalling.
References
Koh, A. et al. Microbially produced imidazole propionate impairs insulin signaling through mTORC1. Cell 175, 947–961.e17 (2018)
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Crunkhorn, S. Microbial metabolite impairs insulin signaling. Nat Rev Drug Discov 17, 864 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrd.2018.215
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nrd.2018.215